Wolf of Winter
by fawningfantasy
Summary: Skylar Lockwood has a secret that not even she herself knows. When the Salvatore brothers come to Mystic Falls, they bring with them the path to discovery, a path she fights hard to run from. What happens when she's forced to face the truth? And what happens when the big bad wolf comes to town? Damon/OC/Klaus (Being Re-written)
1. First Day Back

**For those who read up to chapter 6 of the original version, this was originally written in first person, but I decided to change it to third person. I've also made a few changes to events that happened in the first 6 chapters so it's best to read this, thanks! The first 6 chapters will be posted within the next 2 days.**

 **Chapter 1: First Day Back**

 **-x-x-x-**

" _Good friend, good books,_

 _And a sleepy conscience:_

 _This is the ideal life."_

Mark Twain.

 **-x-x-x-**

Skylar Lockwood had never been a morning person.

She had never enjoyed morning jogs, no matter how many times Tyler tried to force her outside to join him.

And this morning was no different. As Skylar laid sleeping, blissfully unaware of the world around her, she couldn't see her twin brother creeping into her room with a mischievous smile crossing his face.

"Time to get up!" He yelled, leaping up onto the bed.

Skylar startled awake, noticing Tyler jumping up and now beside her, before turning to groan back into her pillow. "Get off, Tyler. I want to sleep in today." She moaned, tucking her covers tighter around her body.

She knew what was to come. She already knew that Tyler would never leave her bedroom until he had managed to convince her to join him in a morning workout before they had to go to school for the day. With their parents being the high class, let other people do the work for you, kind of people, Skylar often wondered where her twin brother got his energy from; the energy that she often lacked.

Tyler scoffed a laugh, landing his last jump as he laid down beside her. "You want to sleep in every day, Skye."

Slightly turning her head, she locked eyes with him. "Some would say I'm a normal teenager."

"Well I say you're lazy." He grinned mockingly, before rising from the bed, yanking the quilt off her in the process.

Skye groaned as she felt the light chill run up her newly exposed legs. "No." She complained, curling in on herself while shoving her pillow over her head. "Why do you hate me?"

"I don't." He chuckled. "Which is why I'm trying to keep you healthy." Tugging the pillow away from her, he smirked. "Now get up, it's just a quick 30-minute jog and then we can get ready for school."

"The fact you think 30 minutes can be defined as quick concerns me." She grumbled, throwing her legs over the side of her bed. "But fine, I'll join you."

With a look of triumph, Tyler left the room, calling back to say that he expected her down stairs in 5 minutes or he'd be back with a jug of cold water. She knew he wasn't lying, being the victim of his cold attacks 7 times in the last year after going straight back to bed.

When others first met the twins, they often found it hard to believe they were even related. Tyler Lockwood had inherited everything from their father: deep brown eyes, dark hair, extremely tan skin. Whereas Skylar had gained every physical feature of their mother; sea blue eyes, light brown hair, skin only ever so slightly tanned. To the unknowing eye, they seemed completely different in every way. However, for those who knew the pair, they were known to have the same temper; a quality that they had most definitely picked up from their father.

Swiftly getting dressed, Skye gave her pet rat, Splinter, a quick pet as she went to leave the room. "Good morning sweet face." She cooed, as the small creature nuzzled into her touch.

It had taken Splinter some time to settle down in the Lockwood mansion, as the tiny scars on Skylar's hands would tell you. She had rescued him a year ago after he had been found in an abandoned house, close to death in a cage. After spotting him in the local animal shelter, she couldn't resist.

Now, he was the friendliest little rat you could ever meet. Now spending every night sat on her shoulder while she sketched or did some homework, nipping at her ear whenever he wanted attention or a little treat.

Sighing, Skylar left her little furry friend to join her brother on the jog she really didn't want to be a part of.

 **-x-x-x-**

An hour later, she was fully showered, dressed and exhausted.

Looking into her full-length mirror, Skylar sighed, wondering if she should be more creative with her clothing. She was dressed in black ripped skinny jeans, of which she had about 20 pairs, a sleeveless burgundy turtleneck and a black beanie. She was very rarely caught without a hat on her head, the only change in her day to day appearance was the shirt. Always a turtleneck, the colours and sleeve length being the only differentiating factor.

Her mother constantly tried to convince Skye to go to every little town event being held so that she could dress her up to perfection. It seemed to her, that her mother would be happier with a daughter like Caroline Forbes; fashion forward, always out to impress everyone with her style and her looks.

Glancing at her phone, she expected a multitude of texts from her bubbly best friend to be waiting for her to read. They had met back in kindergarten and been inseparable since; going on family holidays together, being there for each other when they were having a hard time and being able to talk to one another about every single aspect of their lives.

As a ray of sunlight spread across her room, Skylar smiled. It was a sunny day in Mystic Falls; a good day. She just hoped that the weather was an accurate representation of the day to come. Elena was going to make an appearance today after the death of her parents. She hadn't seen her all summer.

Rubbing the slight car on her forearm, she couldn't imagine what it would be like to lose her parents, but she did understand what it felt like to be the survivor of a car accident where someone else had lost their life.

A pair of loud voices brought Skye out of her thoughts, slowly exiting her room to find out what the commotion was. Of course, she should have already guessed that it was the raised voices of her father and brother, arguing as they always did.

She noticed Tyler storm out of the front door, leaving their father seething in the entrance to the living room. It looked like if she wanted to ride with Tyler to school, she was going to have to skip breakfast.

"Skylar." Her father greeted with a sigh as she made her way down the stairs. "I'm sorry you had to see that, how are you doing sweetheart?" He asked, pulling her in for a small hug.

"I'm okay." She shrugged, looking at the front door she'd just seen Tyler rush out of. "You know, you don't have to be so hard on him. He's doing all he can."

Mayor Lockwood ran a hand down his face, pinching the top of his nose. "I don't want to talk about this." He grumbled, glancing back at the living room. "Do you need breakfast? I have to go, but I can ask someone to make you something."

"No." She quickly interjected. "It's alright, Ty and I agreed to ride to school together today. He'll probably pick something up for us on the way."

"Alright." He nodded with a small smile. "Have a good day."

As Skylar left the house, she noticed Tyler had already brought his car around to the front of the house, almost feeling the anger radiating off him as she slipped into the passenger's side.

Tyler had never really gotten along with their father, the pair always managing to butt heads. She often put it down to him being the only son, their dad pushing all his high expectations onto him. It made her feel sorry for Ty, hoping that he would gain some semblance of respect soon.

Skylar, however, was treated like a princess; daddy's little girl. The stereotypical father/daughter bond was ever present between the two of them. Tyler was always expected to take care of her no matter where they were or what they were doing; he was to keep her safe.

"What was it about this time?" She asked, gently placing a hand on his arm.

He sighed, resting his forehead on the steering wheel. "Apparently I'm not practicing for the team enough. I practice five times a week, what more can I do?"

"You know he doesn't mean anything he says, Ty." She tried to comfort him. "He just wants what's best for you."

The laugh that came from him was clearly sour. "You sound just like mom."

Her head bowing in shame, she knew that it wasn't Tyler's fault he had to go through this. And she knew that her father was definitely in the wrong. "C'mon." She smiled. "Let's go to school. You know you're basically worshipped there, I can't think of a better way to cheer you up."

"Sure." He replied, sarcasm overpowering his tone. "Schoolwork makes everything better."

 **-x-x-x-**

Much to her delight, Tyler had stopped at The Grill on the way to school, buying her breakfast as an apology for rushing her out of the house. However, it had almost made them late for school, students walking towards the large building they all attended.

"Skylar!" A voice called as the pair got out of the vehicle. "Over here!"

Skye looked over to find Caroline rushing towards her with a large grin.

"Hey, Care." She greeted with a swift hug.

"What took you so long?" Caroline laughed. "You've already missed so much. There's a new guy starting today, and he is _so hot._ "

Rolling her eyes, Skye couldn't help but smile at her best friend. "The school day hasn't even officially started yet, and you already found a boy to focus on? Really?"

She had tried, and failed, multiple times to convince Caroline to focus on her studies instead of the strange rivalry she imagined with Elena. Care just didn't seem to listen to her rants of how amazing she was all on her own and how if she acted like herself then she'd get a lot more attention.

"Wait until you see him, you'll understand." Caroline explained, linking their arms together as they made their way over to the school. "Ever girl in the school is talking about him. If they're not talking about Elena, of course."

"She did lose her parents, Care." Skye sighed, hoping that Caroline would at least try to be sensitive towards the family. "Hopefully everyone learns to keep quiet about it soon, or she'll never be able to get past it. Her _or_ Jeremy."

Thinking back to the summer that had just passed, Skylar thought about how different the Gilbert children had already become. She'd shut herself off from most of her friends, refusing to come to parties and going away for a summer trip to spend time with some other members of the family. Jeremy had sunk to the levels of Vicki Donovan, becoming a stoner in his own right. She hoped that the new school year would bring happiness for the pair of them; that they could start to move on with their lives, as difficult as that may be.

"I know, I know." Caroline said, moving her hand as though she wanted to get off the subject at hand. "I already gave her a hug and everything this morning. Anyway, I think that the new guy is going to be in a couple of our classes, at least I hope so."

"Seriously, Caroline, I doubt he's that great." Tyler piped up from Skylar's other side, already tired of the way the conversation was heading. "And desperation isn't exactly attractive in a girl."

"I can already feel the testosterone spiking." Caroline rolled her eyes. "And it's not desperation, it's confidence."

Skye sighed as she opened her locker to put away the books she wouldn't yet need, watching her brother walk away to no doubt find Vicki before class. "I think we should really just be focusing on our schoolwork."

Caroline whined slightly tugging on Skylar's shirt. "Come on, Skye. I get that you're the smarty pants student, but surely you can start thinking about guys now?" She begged. "I'm sure your mother would be _thrilled_."

"Are the guys here really that great if _you_ have to get me interested in them?" She smirked, walking into the classroom with her best friend following behind her, ready for her first English lesson of the year.

"Oh, shut up, you'll love it." Caroline flipped her hair as she turned to the front of the room, giving their teacher her full attention.

Skylar wasn't necessarily against the idea of a relationship but having been on a handful of dates with a couple of guys from the football team, she'd quickly decided that nobody here was quite right for her.

Tyler had been ecstatic, being able to act as the protective brother to warn off every guy who showed any interest. He got to pretend to be the big tough guy who had a say in her love life, all while Skylar had a solid excuse to keep guys from asking her out on dates she didn't want to go on.

She had decided a while ago that she would focus on grades for the time being, get into a good college and start a good career before trying to figure out how to have a successful relationship. Boys would just mess up her peaceful life; she didn't want that.

 **-x-x-x-**

"Elena." Skylar called out, before falling into step with her and Bonnie as they made their way to third period French. "It's good to see you."

"Hey Skye." Elena smiled in return, stopping to hug her life long friend. "I thought I'd have seen you by now."

Shrugging her shoulders as they resumed their walk to class, Skylar sighed. "Ty and dad got into another argument, I only just made it to school on time."

"Is Tyler okay?" She asked.

"Tyler's just… Tyler." Skye mumbled as they sat down at their desks. "So, how's school been for the pair of you so far?"

"Pretty uneventful." Elena, shrugged, pulling out her textbook.

Bonnie's face was one of disbelief, "Uneventful? The hot new guy spent our entire History lesson staring at you from across the classroom."

"Ugh, not you too." Skye groaned. "He's been here for two classes; does he not deserve to settle in before everyone starts drooling over him?"

"Have you seen him yet?" She asked, eyebrows raised with a smirk. "The guy puts all the dudes here to shame."

Taking a deep breath, Skye rested her head in her hands. "Who cares?"

"Bonnie has decided that this is her year." Elena smirked. "She's gonna meet a guy, coin a phrase."

"Coin a phrase?" Skylar laughed.

Bonnie rolled her eyes. "Trany mess is apparently out, I intend to start the next saying."

"How noble of you." She dryly replied.

"Anyway." Bonnie said, getting back on topic. "The new guy was _totally_ checking you out."

As Skye watched Elena blush, she couldn't help but worry about Caroline's reaction to Elena having the new guys attention on the first day. Care always got so weird when Elena Gilbert was involved, and Skye really didn't need to deal with her jealous rantings once more.

"Well, who could blame him?" Skylar joked, lightly squishing Elena's cheeks. "Look at the pretty little face."

Elena giggled, pushing her hands away. "Stop it. It was nothing, really."

"Well, only time will tell." Bonnie grinned, before turning her attention back to Skye. "And what's up with you anyway? Why are you so against guys today? You can usually appreciate an attractive guy when he comes around."

"Because, it's his first day at a new school and already every girl is leering at him. You haven't even spoken to the guy and you're already prepared to jump him." Skylar gave a helpless laugh.

Before she could say anything more, she felt a slight nudge to her side as Bonnie motioned for her to look at the entrance to the classroom. Glancing over, she noticed the new guy make his way into the room. And as much as Skye slightly hated herself for it, she could understand why everyone was already hooked on the guy; the strong jawline, the stylish haircut, the deep green peaceful eyes that reminded you of the forest. He looked like he was kind, but the there was also just a hint of secrecy; like he was hiding something from the world.

"Told you." Bonnie snickered, noticing Skylar's stare.

"Shut up." Skye replied, biting back an amused smile.

Leaning in a bit closer to her Bonnie whispered "I thought you'd change your tone. How long until Caroline knows everything about him?"

"Based on his face?" She asked. "I'm guessing she already knows everything."

 **-x-x-x-**

It was almost a tradition for the group of friends to meet up at The Grill after their first day of school. Getting together to discuss the parties planned for the year, to figure out what to do for the projects that were already set for them.

The Grill was the usual meeting place for almost everyone in the small town of Mystic Falls; both students and adults alike. So, the group tended to nominate a few to go straight from school to guarantee a table.

Skylar sat at a table with Tyler and his best friend Matt Donovan while they waited for their food to arrive. The Lockwood twins often chose to be the first there, deciding it was better than returning home to the judging eyes of their parents.

"Thank, Vic." Matt said to his sister as she placed their food in front of them.

"Do you need another refill?" She asked Tyler, blanking her younger brother.

"I'd love one." Tyler smirked, his stone seductive.

Scrunching up her face in disgust, Skylar mumbled. "Gross."

"Please tell me you're not hooking up with my sister." Matt pleaded.

Tyler simply shrugged. "I'm not hooking up with your sister." He said, conveying anything but honesty.

Matt sighed, picking up a chip from his plate. "You're such a dick." Half way through his bite, he looked at Tyler again. "How would you feel if I started sleeping with Skye?" He asked, pointing at her with the half-eaten chip.

"Like you would go for anyone who isn't Elena." Tyler snickered.

"Well maybe I will."

Taking that moment to punch him in the arm, Skylar grumbled. "I'm right here, you ass."

Tyler laughed hard, almost chocking on his drink. "Not to mention, you'd have to get Skye to agree to it. Which I doubt she ever will."

"You could still stay away from _my_ sister." Matt muttered, glancing around The Grill.

Skylar sighed, taking a bite out of her burger. "You know, you really should try to find a girl." She said to Matt. "I love Elena dearly, but all this pining away really isn't healthy."

"I'm not pining." He murmured, pushing his food around his plate.

Scoffing a laugh, she shook her head. "Sure, you're not. Just like I'm not away to kick you in the shin."

"What?" He asked quickly, before gasping in pain, clutching his leg. "What the hell?"

"Negative reinforcement." She stated. "Every time you so much as _think_ of Elena, I'm going to hurt you."

"Why the hell do I hang out with either of you?" He scowled.

Tyler threw his arm around his twin sister with confidence. "Because we're awesome."

As Vicki came over and filled up their glasses, Skylar noticed as Tyler glanced at the older girl's ass.

"Ow." Tyler gasped in pain, clutching his ankle.

"The same goes for you." She glared at him. "Negative reinforcement."

Since Tyler had started up his little thing with Vicki, he had changed. He had become quite an asshole when out in public, treating almost everyone like crap, including Vicki. Skye just didn't understand why, she just wanted their fling to end. Although, she could almost call it an affair with how hard Tyler tried to hide it from their parents. They both knew that their mother wouldn't approve, she wanted them both to be happy, but to be happy with a certain type of person; a higher class. Unfortunately for Vicki, she didn't fall under that category.

 **-x-x-x-**

Not much later, as Matt wondered off to talk to Bonnie, Caroline joined the Lockwoods near the pool table to talk about the big game coming up.

"Are you sure we're going to win?" Skye asked her brother. "You really think you're that good?"

"Is that a serious question?" He scoffed.

Smirking, she leaned against the table behind her. "I guess you're biased."

"We have to get the cheerleading routine down." Caroline said, facing her best friend with determination clear in her eyes. "If we don't start practicing more then we're going to look like wobbly sloths."

Already with her phone out, searching the term, Skye asked. "Are you saying you wouldn't like to see a wobbly sloth? Cause that sounds cute as hell."

Caroline didn't have a chance to answer, everyone's attention being drawn to Elena walking in with Stefan Salvatore.

"Seriously?" Caroline sighed in annoyance. "He's been here a day and already he pounces on Elena?"

Linking their arms together, Skylar tried to figure out a way to calm down her friend. "He's the new guy." She reasoned. "They probably just ran into each other. You know how Elena is, she'll have tried to make him feel welcome. Surely you should be happy that she's brought him here?" She asked with a small smile. "It means you get to talk to him too."

"I guess." Caroline replied, letting go of Skye to sort out her hair.

"He is not…" Tyler started, gaining his sister's attention.

She watched as Matt walked over and shook Stefan's hand, having an extremely awkward interaction with the pair. "Oh Mattie, you don't have to be the nice guy right now." Skye sighed.

"She dumps his ass and then he shakes hands with his replacement?" Tyler scoffed. "The guy needs help."

"And you're going to help him?" She asked with a raised brow. "Don't screw with the new guy, Ty. He hasn't done anything wrong."

Scowling at her, he shook his head. "He needs to be brought down a peg. Everyone has been treating him like some kind of God."

"I think you're overreacting." She said.

"Whatever."

Realising what the real issue was, Skylar couldn't help but laugh. "Oh my God, Care was right. You're jealous." She accused, pointing her finger into his chest. "You're worried about not being the guy that girls fawn over anymore." Turning to include her best friend, she noticed as Caroline had already made her way over to the little group.

"You should probably get over there." Tyler grumbled. "Before Caroline makes a fool out of herself."

Sighing in defeat, Skye had to admit her brother was actually right about this. Caroline would go overboard trying to gain every little bit of useful information, all while trying, _very obviously_ , to flirt with whoever had managed to fall victim to her attention for the week. She could only imagine how quickly the quizzing would begin.

"So, you were born in Mystic Falls?" Skye heard her ask as she came over to the table.

It would take only a few seconds, apparently.

"Mm-hmm. And moved when I was still young." He answered, trailing off to look in my direction.

"Oh, Stefan, this is Skylar Lockwood." Elena introduced, "Skye, this is Stefan Salvatore."

"The new guy." She greeted, reaching her hand out to him. "It's nice to meet you."

"It's nice to meet you too." He smiled in return, shaking her hand. "Lockwood? One of the founding families?"

Sighing, she glanced over at her brother. "The very same. The mayor's daughter, mother throws extravagant parties, brother is known for being a bit of a dick."

"Good to know." He replied with a small laugh. "So, is it coincidence that you all became friends with your last names or?"

"We've basically known each other since birth." Elena smiled.

"What about your parents? They aren't here with you?" Bonnie asked, as they spoke about family.

Stefan sighed, looking down at the table awkwardly. "My parents passed away."

Elena's face fell, eyes filled with understanding. "I'm sorry… Any siblings?"

"None that I talk to." He said. "I live with my uncle."

"Zach, right?" Skye asked. "At the boarding house?"

"Yeah." He replied. "Do you know him?"

Shrugging her shoulder, she smiled. "My mother usually sends Tyler and I to the founding family homes, trying to get any sentimental item we can." She explained. "I'm usually the one who gets sent to see Zach, he's really nice… Although, he never mentioned having a nephew?"

"My parents were military." He sighed. "We didn't really keep in touch."

Caroline seemed to twitch with anxiety as she realised she hadn't spoken in a while. "So, Stefan. If you're new, then you don't know about the party tomorrow."

"It's a back to school thing at the falls." Bonnie filled in.

Turning to Elena, Stefan asked. "Are you going?"

"Of course, she is." Bonnie cut in as Elena went to decline.

Holding back a smile as Elena shot Bonnie a look, Skylar stood up from the table offering to get the next round of refreshments.

"I'll help you." Stefan said, standing to join her.

"Sure." She smiled. "Thanks."

While the pair waited for the drinks, Stefan noted the slight scar on her arm.

Glancing down at it, she shrugged her shoulders feeling the need to explain. "Car accident." She told him. "I was with an old friend, and everything went wrong."

"I'm sorry." He said, easily able to deduce that said friend hadn't made it.

Skylar gave a soft smile, choosing to end the conversation before she had to explain any further.

Turning to the side, she couldn't help but notice Tyler off in a corner with Vicki, the two of them groping each other shamelessly. "So gross." She muttered.

"There a problem?" Stefan asked, concerned.

"My brother is just…" She started, not knowing how to really finish her sentence. "He's just different from what he used to be. He doesn't think with his head anymore and he doesn't seem to care who he hurts. It doesn't matter. Family are supposed to annoy you, right?"

He smiled as he nodded his agreement. "I have a brother too. We don't speak, I very rarely agree with anything that he does. He can be quite destructive, I'd probably describe him a 'kind of a dick', too."

"Right?" She asked, noticing his quoting of what she'd said before. "Tyler and I used to be inseparable, joint at the hip, but now he's turning into this completely different person."

"Sometimes one little thing can happen and suddenly everything has changed." He replied. "Hopefully he learns from his mistakes and you get your brother back soon."

Stopping him from going back to the table just yet, Skylar thought it was best to avoid Caroline overhearing any of the conversation. The last thing he needed was her prying into his family drama for the rest of the week. "And what about your brother?" She asked. "You don't think he can come back to you?"

"Damon is too far gone." He explained with a sigh, taking hold of a few drinks. "I doubt that there's anything good still left in him."

"I think there's always some good still left in everyone." She started. "You just need to find the right thing to bring it out of them."

Stefan looked at her with questioning eyes. "That's extremely optimistic."

Shrugging with a small smile, she started to make her way back to the table. "I like to think that everyone can be saved."

 **-x-x-x-**

When the two siblings arrived home later that night, Skylar let out a sigh to find their mother waiting in the entrance for them.

"Skylar, do you really have to hide your hair under those things?" She asked, fidgeting with the beanie.

"Mom." Skye complained, moving away from her mother's grasp.

"You're never going to get a suitable young man's attention while you're dressed like this." She scolded. "Just, let me take you shopping. We'll get you an entire new wardrobe, you could be absolutely beautiful, dear."

Moving past her, up the stairs to follow Tyler, Skylar quickly called back. "I'm good, mom. Thanks."

"At least we both get along with one parent." Tyler scoffed, halting in front of his bedroom door.

"Shame it's not the same one." Skye grumbled in reply. "And it's not like you and mom have the perfect relationship. She constantly judges your taste in girls."

"She's better than dad." He shrugged, closing his bedroom door behind him to end the conversation.

Making her way to her own bedroom, she could hear Splinter pinging on the bars of his cage before she even opened the bedroom door.

Greeting him with a smile, she opened his cage door and held out her hand for him to scramble onto. She couldn't help but instantly relax as he climbed up onto her shoulder, nuzzling his tiny face into her cheek. Skylar would always be thankful for finding the little creature, always knowing he could lift her mood no matter how hard it had fallen. If an animal had the capability to love a person, this rat loved her as much as physically possible.

Opening up her balcony doors, Skye stepped out into the cool breeze that came with the night. "What do you think, Splinter? Is this school year going to be a good one?" She asked, leaning forward on her railing to look up at the stars.

Feeling him scurry to the other side of her neck, she gave him a quizzical look before turning to find the cause for his distress.

A crow had perched on the railing beside her.

"Is there a reason you're here?" She asked the bird, as though it were going to give a genuine response. "Are you hungry?"

Walking back into her bedroom, she settled Splinter down onto her bed to wait for her return as she collected some bird feed out of her bedside table. Having a balcony, she always liked to be prepared for any little visitors that may appear in the morning.

"Want some food?" She asked the crow, as she walked back outside, pouring some of the feed out onto the railing. Smiling as it started to eat, she pondered out loud. "I don't see why you're linked to death and bad luck, I find you quite lovely."

Feeling a gaze on her, she glanced down into the gardens below and froze.

There was a man.

From this distance, she could only slightly make him out beyond the fog that had started to gather. She could have sworn he was pale, dressed all in black; but that was just a guess. A leather jacket, maybe?

She felt an instant dread overcome her, as he stared at her balcony.

Quickly shuffling back into her room, she locked her balcony doors behind her. Trying to get the idea of a man staring at her bedroom out of her mind, she drew the curtains, but couldn't contain her curiosity.

Peering out of the window, she saw that both the fog and the strange man had disappeared.

Was it all a part of her imagination? Surely he couldn't have gone out of sight so fast? Should she tell someone? What if it was nothing?

Twisting the charm on her bracelet from nervous habit, she tried to calm her racing heart.

Choosing to wait until morning to tell her parents, who were no doubt settling into bed for the night, she curled up on her bed next to Splinter. She would usually put him away for the night, but tonight was different; she needed the comfort.

As her eyes closed, finally granting her rest, she couldn't help but wonder…

Maybe crows were bad omens after all.

 **-x-x-x-**

 **A/N: Damon/OC/Klaus story. Indeed, it is happening. Because I am vampire trash.**

 **I'm late to the game with Vampire Diaries fanfictions, since the show has already finished. But anyone who is fine with reading a fic that starts alllll the way back here, welcome!**

 **This is obviously starting from episode one and will go on throughout the entire show, so it'll be a while until Klaus comes into it, haha.**

 **Let me know what you guys think by leaving a review!**

 **Thanks for at least giving it a chance.**

 **For anyone interested, I picture Skylar as Lyndsy Fonseca.**

 **~fawningfantasy x**


	2. It Was A Hot Back

**Chapter 2: It Was a Hot Back.**

 **-x-x-x-**

" _Whispering._

 _Morning keep the streets empty,_

 _For me."_

Fever Ray – Keep the Streets Empty for Me.

 **-x-x-x-**

The next morning, Skylar was awoken by the sound of her cell phone vibrating away on her bed side table.

Groaning, she picked up the phone to check the caller ID, not surprised by the name that crossed her screen. Her best friend was never one to care about how early or late it was for anyone she was trying to reach.

"Hey, Care." She mumbled, rubbing the sleep from her eyes.

"Skye!" The bubbly blonde almost yelled through the phone. "Hurry up and get ready, we're going to get breakfast at The Grill before school today, so we can come up with a way to get Stefan Salvatore to fall in love with me."

Throwing her head back against her pillow with a sigh, Skylar replied "C'mon, Care, surely you can see how this is going to end?"

"With a June wedding?" She asked. "Yeah, I can."

Snorting out a laugh, Skylar simply said "You're impossible." Before she heard her friend use the car horn. "Wait, Caroline, are you _driving right now_?"

"Yeah, why?" Caroline answered, not seeming to understand why Skye was shocked.

"Your mom is the _sheriff_. How can you be so nonchalant with breaking the law? Talking on the phone whilst driving gets people _killed_ , Care."

The young Lockwood could almost hear the blonde on the other end of the phone roll her eyes. "It's fine, Skye. So, you'll be ready in 10 minutes, yes?" She asked, hope clear in her voice.

"Fine." Skylar sighed. "I'll see you when you get here. You _better_ bring coffee."

Hearing a swift laugh over the phone, she hung up, rubbing a hand down her face before she turned to her little furry friend who had spent the night on one of her pillows.

Splinter stood frozen looking at her as Skye's eyes scrunched in confusion, until she saw the small piece of poop next to him.

"Why would you do that?" She asked the small animal. "All I do is love you."

"Wakey-wakey!" Tyler shouted, sprinting into the room before coming to a halt by her bed. "Oh, you're already awake."

Glaring, Skye got out of bed and put Splinter back in his cage for the day, checking to make sure he still had food and water. "Caroline already beat you to it." She explained, over her shoulder.

"The hell, man? She should know that mornings are my turf." He mumbled. "You know you still have to go for a run with me, right?"

"Can't" She smiled back. "I have to be ready in less than 10 minutes for Caroline getting here. So, unless you want to see your sister naked, I'd suggest leaving." She finished her sentence, grabbing the hem of her pyjama top.

He was gone within seconds.

Pondering why she had never played the naked card before to get Tyler to leave her alone, she started getting ready for her day.

"Maybe I'll sleep naked." She mumbled to herself. "Won't get woken up anymore."

 **-x-x-x-**

"Caroline, Stefan seemed really down to earth yesterday." Skylar said as the waitress brought over their breakfast. "I really think that he'd prefer a chilled-out girl. Don't try so hard."

"That's easy for _you_ to say." Caroline argued, stabbing her salad with her fork. "You're the _unavailable_ one. If you so much as blinked at a guy he'd jump at the chance for a shot with the girl who nobody can have."

Sighing, Skye chose to just eat her pancakes with bacon and try to get the conversation off of the new guy. "What about Matt? He's a good guy."

Caroline's fork full of salad stopped half way to her mouth, her eyes focusing a glare onto her best friend. "Did you really just suggest our friend who is pining away for Elena?"

"He has to get over her sometime." She mumbled. "And if you really insist on making this whole thing between you and Elena a competition, what better move than to make it work with the guy she couldn't?"

The blonde's eyes shifted from side to side in contemplation, before she shook her head of the idea. "No." She said, firmly. "It's Matt, that'd be too weird."

"I think it'd be a great idea. But okay, I get it." Skye replied, taking a sip from her drink, taking a look around The Grill. "There aren't really any guys here just now to steal your attention."

Scoffing, Caroline shook her head. "We know all the guys in town, Skye." Her eyes widening at a realisation. "But maybe that's the problem. We should go on a trip!" She suggested eagerly. "We'd be able to meet some new guys, maybe some more _interesting_ guys, _hotter_ guys."

Skylar highly doubted that would be the case, not understanding why her best friend couldn't just wait until college to find a guy. Surely there would be a range of guys for her to fawn over when she'd found a new home away from Mystic Falls. Very few people ever moved to the small town, and even fewer left. Go far enough away and you'd be capable of meeting a whole bunch of new people.

"Anyway," Caroline whined. "You're meant to be helping me come up with a plan for Stefan, not try and focus my attention on some other guy. Come on, what would you do?"

"I think you and I both know exactly what I'd do." Skye stressed, finishing her breakfast. "I'd do _nothing_. Because devising a plan to trap a high school boy, or any boy for that matter, into a relationship is insane."

Rolling her eyes, Care pushed her plate to the side. "Whatever. You've seen the guy, it's going to take so much more than that to get his attention."

"Sure." She caved, hoping that it would just end the conversation. "Fine. Ehh, I'll just meet you at the car, okay? I'm gonna go to the bathroom real quick."

"Alright."

Once Skye was finished, she made her way to leave The Grill, checking her bag to make sure she had everything she needed before they went to school. As she stepped out of the door, she accidentally nudged into someone who was walking in.

"Sorry." She quickly said, turning to face them.

But the man didn't turn around, walking off towards the bar without even the slightest acknowledgement that anything had happened. Maybe he had bumped into her on purpose, not caring about his actions.

As she watched him walk away, she couldn't help but take in his appearance, mind flashing back to the previous night; to the man she was sure had been staring into her window. This guy was dressed from head to toe in black, a leather jacket covering his upper body.

Surely, she was imagining things. It made no sense for this man, who Skye was certain was no resident of Mystic Falls, to have been stood outside of her home in the gardens watching her from a distance. She had never met him before, why would he gaze into her balcony?

Then again, the idea of a strange man staring into her bedroom amidst sudden fog was exactly the kind of horror story that everyone was told as a child.

Jumping at the unexpected sound of a car horn behind her, Skye spun around to find that Caroline had brought the car around.

"Come on you slacker, we're going to be late." Caroline called out, giving Skylar a confused glance as she got into the car. "What took you so long?"

"Did you see that guy?" She asked, turning to look back at the building she'd just walked out of.

"What guy?" Caroline asked, setting off for the school. "Was he cute?"

Shaking her head with a small sigh, Skylar knew that Caroline wouldn't care about the dangerous aspect, and instead would come up with her own idea of some steamy scene from an adult film. "Never mind… It was nobody, it doesn't matter."

 **-x-x-x-**

At lunch, Skylar sat discussing classes with Elena and Bonnie. Unfortunately, French was their only subject that they had together, Skylar mostly having Caroline and her brother with her. Surprisingly, Stefan Salvatore had a few of the same classes as her, much to Caroline's delight.

"I just don't understand why they still keep Tanner on as a teacher." Bonnie said, twirling the straw in her drink. "I get that he's a good coach, but he's the worst person to teach students."

"Tell me about it." Skye sighed, "I used to _love_ history growing up, now the thought of going into the History classroom makes me want to forget everything that happened before the present day."

Elena's eyes lit up in recognition. "You did, didn't you? We leant you some of my family's old journals before."

"Yeah." She smiled. "I honestly think one of your ancestors was slightly insane though, you better hope you didn't get any of his genes."

Elena let out a small laugh before her eyes drifted across the cafeteria.

As Bonnie noticed who her friend was staring at, she grinned. "Speaking of History, you should have seen Stefan in there today. He completely put Tanner to shame."

"Really?" Skye asked, glancing to the Salvatore boy on the other side of the room.

"Yeah, it's true." Elena confirmed. "Stefan seems to really know his stuff, Skye. He might even be able to give you a run for your money."

Skylar gave a sad sigh, leaning her head on her hand. "Tanner doesn't even let me speak in class. That man doesn't care about teaching anyone, he just wants to embarrass students."

"I guess that's what makes him a good coach." Elena shrugged. "It was pretty great though, maybe he'll think twice about picking on someone again."

Or he'll make it his mission to catch Stefan out." Skye suggested. "Knowing Tanner, I'm pretty sure he's going to do that."

"Please tell me you're not all talking about classes when we have a much-needed break?" Caroline sighed as she sat down at the table. "There is a party tonight, prioritise."

"How is everyone getting there?" Elena asked. "Bonnie already said that she'll be a designated driver for the two of us."

Caroline beamed "Matt said that he'll take me, Tyler and Skye. So that all works out."

"What?" Skye cut in. "I already told you I'm not going, Care."

The blonde gave her best friend a sad look, placing a hand on her arm, not too far from the scar. "Skye, it's been a year, I know it'll be hard, and we all miss Gabriella, but you have to come."

At the mention of her old friend's name, Skylar flinched.

"I won't be drinking, Skye." Bonnie assured. "If you want to leave at any point, I'll take you home, okay?"

"Please?" Caroline begged from her side. "Even if it's just for a little while?"

Twisting the charm on her bracelet, Skye shifted. "I don't know, guys. I just, I don't think it's a good idea."

"Well if you change your mind," Bonnie started, placing her hand on Skye's. "The offer is there."

"Thank you." She sighed, gathering up her stuff. "I think I'm gonna go get some air, I'll see you all later, okay?"

With that she walked away, leaving her three friends to watch her with sympathetic glances.

 **-x-x-x-**

"If it would make you feel safer, I'll drive." Tyler offered later that night.

Caroline had gone to him with the news that Skylar was refusing to make an appearance at the party. Everyone knew that if someone had a chance to get through to her, it was her twin brother.

He had been the one to first convince her back into the car after the accident. And for a good while he was the only one that she would get into a car with, later agreeing to let Caroline drive. Although it wasn't often that she would. It had taken everything in her to climb into Caroline's car that morning after knowing she'd been on the phone on the drive there.

"Tyler, it's not just that." Skye sighed.

"I know." He sighed, sitting beside her on her bed. "I know, Skye. I get it, I know what party this is."

It was the same party.

The accident had occurred a year ago after the exact same party; the back to school celebration at the falls. Gabriella had been drinking, and Skylar had refused to let her drive home alone. Looking back, she knows she should have tried harder, convinced her to wait for a lift, but her friend had refused to wait to go home. Gabriella's boyfriend had broken up with her only minutes before they had left the party, Gabby couldn't be stopped.

"I just don't want to go to this one, Ty. I'll go to the next party." She sighed, twirling the charm of her bracelet once more.

"Please?" Tyler asked, softly. "You're not going to be able to get past it if you can't face it, Skye. And you know that next year, our final year, there will be no stopping Caroline from dragging you to this party." He reasoned. "Don't you think it's best to go to this one, even for a little while? Ease yourself back into it this year before you have to go to it next year?"

Thinking it over in her head, Skylar could understand what he was saying. It did make sense, and she couldn't hide from this party; she had to face it. Skylar knew she wouldn't want to miss anything from her final year at the school and she didn't want to spend this party next year being uncomfortable and afraid.

"Okay." She whispered, nodding slightly. "I'll go, but can you please drive us there?"

"And drive you home as early as you want." He confirmed, wrapping his arm around her in comfort before leaving to call Matt and Caroline to tell them what was happening.

She took a deep breath, trying to calm herself down.

It would be okay.

 **-x-x-x-**

Caroline and Matt had arrived not long after, Caroline refusing to let Skylar dress as she would every day. They managed to come to a compromise, Skye being able to keep the ripped jeans as long as she ditched the beanie and wore a nice top.

"You look so much better without that stupid hat." Caroline whined as they arrived at the falls. "I really wish you'd just let your mom take you shopping."

Sighing, Skylar picked up a bottle of water off one of the tables at the tree line, watching as her brother and Matt walked off to find their jock friends. "Do you really want us to start a conversation about mothers?"

With a scowl, she shook her head motioning towards Elena and Bonnie. "You go ahead, I'll be right back, Shelly said that she needed to tell me something."

"He has that romance novel stare." Skye heard Bonnie chuckle as she got closer to them. "Stefan looked deep into her eyes, piercing her very soul."

"Why am I not surprised that the conversation is already about the new guy?" She laughed.

Elena grinned as she pulled her in for a hug. "You made it." Pulling away, she sent a mock glare towards Bonnie. "Bonnie is just trying to get me to admit that I'm smitten with Stefan."

"You mean you have to admit it?" Skylar asked, feigning confusion as she looked towards Bonnie. "I thought it was obvious that she wants to have his children?"

"That's what I'm saying!" Bonnie giggled. "See? I told you it wasn't just me."

Elena rolled her eyes half-heartedly. "You're both wrong. I just think he could use a friend."

"Where is he anyway?" Bonnie asked.

"I don't know, you tell me, you're the psychic one." Elena replied.

"Right, I forgot. Okay, give me a sec. Grams says I have to concentrate."

Looking between the pair, Skylar had no idea what was going on. "What's happening?" She asked, eyebrows furrowed.

"Bonnie's Grams is trying to convince her that she's psychic." Elena explained, before her eyes widened. "Wait! You need a crystal ball!"

"If that isn't the cliché." Skye snickered, noticing an empty beer bottle to the side. "Here." She said, handing it to Bonnie.

Before anything else could be said, Bonnie's eyes widened in horror as their fingers grazed each other. As she started to hurriedly explain her vision about a crow, Skye wondered if there was any chance that Bonnie's Grams had been telling her the truth. She thought back to the crow on her balcony the previous night, the man who she could have sworn was stood watching her… And the Gilbert journals that had been brought up earlier that day.

She had read about a woman named Emily Bennett. In one of the journals, Elena's family member, who she'd been convinced was insane, had written about the rumours that Emily was a witch. Skye had just passed it off as the rantings of a man who had a few screws loose, but with what she was hearing at the moment, maybe it wasn't so far-fetched after all…

"I need a refill." Bonnie said, darting off into the crowd.

"I thought she wasn't drinking?" Skye asked Elena, both watching their friend rush off.

Elena sighed, "She's not."

Skye caught a glimpse of Stefan coming up to the pair. Deciding that it was best to leave them to flirt amongst themselves, she excused herself to go and find Caroline.

Wondering around, she watched as her fellow students all downed bottles and cups of beer and spirits, hoping that they all had a safe way of getting home. Off to the side of the big bonfire that was lit, she could see a guy standing on his own, a bottle of water in his hands.

Jason.

Gabriella's boyfriend. Although, she supposed it would be ex-boyfriend.

"Skye, were you forced here like me?" He asked as he noticed her walking up to him.

Shrugging, she leaned on the tree beside him. "I was told it was better to face the memories head on rather than run from them."

"The guys said something similar to me." He explained, "Apparently it would be the biggest mistake of my life to miss my last ever back to school party."

The pair stood in a comfortable silence, watching the fire for a while. They both appreciated having someone else there that understood how hard it was to be at this party, to try and focus on anything but the person they lost.

"I still think about her every day." He said, suddenly, looking into his bottle of water. "I still can't believe she's gone. I can't believe it's been a year already."

"I know." Skye sighed. "Everyone else seems to have just forgotten about it."

Jason glanced over at his friends, all doing shots and shouting different words of encouragement to each other. "I figured it was better for me to come, make sure I could get them all home okay."

"Tyler has agreed to not drink, make sure I can get home." She replied. "I could drive myself, I guess, but…"

He nodded his understanding, she hadn't had the confidence to drive herself since the accident. "The scar looks better."

Glancing at the pale line, she took a deep breath. "Yeah, I guess. It's like the universe just wanted to make sure I'd never be able to forget what happened."

"Apparently it'll keep getting easier to move past it all." He said, his tone turning slightly resenting. "At least that's what my dad says."

Squeezing his arm in comfort, she gave him a small smile.

His eyes darting over to the forest edge drew her attention to the other side of the clearing.

"It's like they have no shame." She scoffed, watching as Tyler and Vicki disappeared into the tree line. "The noises I've heard from his room… They're permanently etched into my memory."

Jason let out a slight laugh. "It's really good to talk to you again, Skye." He said. "The people I hang around with, they just don't seem to care about the important stuff."

"I get that." She muttered. "You have my number if you ever want to talk, especially around this time of year."

"Thanks, Skye." He replied, gratitude clear in his gaze.

"Now, I'm going to go find my friends." She told him, looking around to see if she could spot anyone. "If I have to watch my brother come out of those woods with twigs in his hair I might actually throw up."

"I'm sure they're just having a nice, deep, meaningful conversation." He struggled to say.

Raising an eyebrow at him, she smirked. "Jase, you're a good guy, but you are a _terrible_ liar."

The pair laughed as they separated, Skylar finally noticing some of her friends off to the side of the party. Caroline, Matt and Bonnie all seemed to be in a conversation, Caroline looking slightly frustrated with the male.

As Skylar looked over in the direction of Matt's gaze, she noticed Stefan and Elena standing together on the bridge.

"How are you doing, Mattie?" She asked, giving him a small hug as she greeted him. "You okay?"

"I'm alright." He said with a meagre smile as she rested her head on his shoulder. "It's just strange seeing her with someone else so fast, you know?"

"I'm sure it is." She said, "But as I said before, you should try moving on too. There are plenty of girls at school who would _love_ to date you."

"When she broke up with me, she said that she wanted to be alone… I thought that she meant that." He said with a sigh. " _Ow_."

Skylar had pinched his arm. "I told you, negative reinforcement. I don't like causing you pain, but this is getting ridiculous."

"I just don't understand what happened." He argued.

"A God moved into town." Caroline quipped from the side.

Skye looked at her with hard eyes, thinking that her friend wasn't really helping the situation. "I'm sure that's _not_ what happened."

"I mean, I guess she's allowed to move on as fast as she wants, it's just hard seeing it." Matt said, looking over at the pair on the bridge.

As they all looked over, they watched as Stefan swiftly walked away, Elena turning to watch him go.

"Maybe he rejected her." Caroline smirked.

"Yeah." Skylar snickered. "Cause people reject Elena."

"Well maybe he's not like the others in this town who fall at her feet." Caroline argued, "No offence Matt."

"None taken." He sighed, "I think I'm going to go get another drink."

As Skylar watched him walk away, she saw Caroline looking over at the bonfire that everyone was gathered around. There was no doubt that she'd be off trying to find Stefan soon.

"I think I'm going to try and find Tyler." She said, hoping to miss the awkward rejection that Caroline was no doubt going to receive. "Hopefully with his pants on."

 **-x-x-x-**

Wandering around the party, she couldn't find Tyler anywhere. She was sure that they would have at least finished by now if they had gone to do what she thought they were. She knew what she'd have to do, she just didn't want to.

"Okay, Skye." She said to herself, "Don't be a baby."

Walking into the forest, she searched for where they could had gone. But nobody appeared to be out there. Maybe they had gone home? Maybe they realised that doing it outside where animals do their business isn't exactly an erotic experience.

Turning to go back to the party, Skye noticed fog starting to twirl around her ankles. Where had that come from? It had been a clear night until then. The world around her suddenly became eerily silent, as though the animals that once lived in the trees all decided that it was too dangerous for them and had to escape the area.

Glancing over her shoulder, she felt like someone or some _thing_ was watching her. Her mind flashed to nature documentaries where they spoke about the prey, how some of them would freeze, suddenly aware of a predator stalking them. It was how she felt at that moment, as though the predator was waiting for the right time to pounce and end her life; she was terrified.

"Why did I come into the forest?" She whispered to herself, as a crow landed on a nearby branch.

The fog, the crow… All that left was…

The silhouette of a man emerged from between two trees, making her take in a sharp breath.

Skylar didn't bother taking the time to try and figure out any defining features of the person shrouded in darkness. She _ran_. She ran until the edge of the tree line came into view, until she knew that she was safely close to the entire student body of Mystic Falls High. Giving one more glance behind herself, she paused.

The fog was gone, as was the person she was sure she'd seen.

"What the hell?" Skye asked herself. Maybe she was starting to lose it, first she thought she saw a guy in her back yard and now this? The Lockwood girl didn't understand any of it.

Turning to go back to the party, she jumped as someone came crashing towards her.

"What the?" Skylar inspected the girl, now laid on the floor. "Caroline?" She asked.

She lifted the blonde up into a sitting position, leaning back against one of the trees. "Why does he not want me?" Caroline asked, tears starting to fall down her cheeks.

Great, she had been rejected. And in a wonderful turn of events, had gotten herself absolutely wasted to try and deal with it.

"Caroline, I find myself repeating something I said just this morning." Skye started, lifting her to her feet and wrapping an arm around her to keep her steady. "Your mother is _the sheriff_. You can't just get drunk like this, she'll have _my head_ for letting you get this way. Not to mention the dangers of getting drunk in the middle of the woods and wondering off alone, what if something happened to you?"

"Like she cares." She mumbled as they walked towards the crowd. "She probably won't even be home anyway."

"Bonnie!" Skye called, noticing their friend stood alone watching the fire. "Help me."

The scar on her arm itched, dragging her mind towards the memories of that night.

 **-x-x-x-**

" _Why doesn't he want me?" Gabriella asked, struggling to stand. "All I did was love him."_

 _Skylar wrapped an arm around her friend, helping her towards the car park, hoping to find someone who could get them home safely. "Gabby, this stuff just happens, it's not your fault."_

" _He dumped me, Skye." She cried. "We've been together for three years and he just broke up with me, just like that."_

 _Skylar didn't really know how to respond, having never been through anything like that herself._

 _As the parked cars came into view, the pair came up to Skylar's car. "I need to get home." Gabriella moaned, opening the car door._

" _Is that really the best idea?" Skye said, her mind hazy. "Maybe we should wait for someone."_

" _I'm fine!" Gabby snapped, "I just need to get home."_

 _Skylar sighed, knowing she wasn't capable of driving herself. "Well, I'm at least going with you." She said, getting into the car._

 **-x-x-x-**

"Yeah, okay." Skylar said over the phone. "I'll see you soon."

Her and Bonnie had decided to take Caroline over to The Grill, hoping that a few cups of coffee would sober her up enough to take her home. She was certain that her mom wouldn't be there to see what state she was in, but neither Bonnie nor Skylar were ready to take that chance.

"Who was that?" Bonnie asked as Skye took a seat next to her.

"Tyler." She answered. "Apparently something happened to Vicki. It's really freaked him out. He said he's not comfortable with me being out just now, so he's going to come and pick me up and take me home."

"Oh, wow." Bonnie said, concern crossing her features. "I'll go call Matt, see how he's doing."

"Alright." Skylar said, watching as Bonnie got up and went to make the phone call.

Caroline had her head resting on her arms on the table, having recently finished her rant about how everybody chooses Elena and how nobody ever wanted her no matter how much she tried.

"You've got to stop this weird competition with Elena." Skye said to her. "She doesn't even know it's happening, you don't need to constantly compare yourself to her."

"But she gets everyone." Caroline sighed into the table.

Skylar looked around, trying to come up with some kind of argument to make her feel better. "Maybe you should focus on school just now? If you have to beat her at something, then just aim for that."

"Ugh, I don't want to win at being a nerd." She whined, raising her head to look at her best friend.

"I take slight offence at that, but okay." Skye said, twirling the charm on bracelet. "You can't help that they like each other. Something must have just clicked between them, that's no one's fault. If you have to blame someone then blame the universe."

All she got in response was a glare.

"Glaring doesn't make you any more attractive."

"The universe sucks." Caroline snapped.

Sighing, she took hold of one of her hands. "Care, you're a good person… _Deep down_. And I'm sure that if you stopped trying so hard then it would be _so easy_ for you to find a guy." She said. "You're pretty, funny and have _amazing_ party planning skills. Any guy would be incredibly lucky to have you."

"Yeah, if Elena rejects them first." Caroline scoffs, looking over at the table behind them.

Skye watched as a smile stretched over her face, her attitude becoming flirtatious.

"Caroline," She started. "I'm not even gonna turn around to look at whoever you're smirking at but I'm telling you right now to give it up."

"Shh!" She glared, before turning back to smile.

Just as the temptation to see who she was looking at was starting to get the best of Skye, Tyler appeared at the side of our table.

"Hey," He said. "Are you ready to go home?"

"Yeah." She answered with a soft smile, rising to her feet. Leaning down to give Caroline a hug goodbye, she gave her a stern look. "Text me when you get home and call me in the morning, okay?"

"Yeah, yeah. Sure." She responded quickly, only half paying attention.

As the Lockwood twins were leaving, Skylar turned to look back at the guy who had clearly caught Caroline's attention, but all she could see was his back.

The same back that she had found herself looking at this morning as she left the Grill. Skye couldn't help but wonder what his face looked like. Only being able to see his back was so frustrating. But she had to give him one thing, the way his leather jacket clung to his shoulders…

It was a hot back.

 **-x-x-x-**

Sitting down on the edge of her bed, Skylar stroked Splinter's fur.

The crow had returned to her balcony, resting on the railing much like it had the night before. Her mind thought back to the party, where Bonnie had looked panicked. How freaked out her friend had looked when describing the crow that she'd seen in her vision.

Skye was sure that she hadn't actually seen many crows in Mystic Falls before. She had definitely never had one sit at her window. And now, when people started to get attacked and killed, when Bonnie had started seeing crows in her mind, when she had started losing her own mind and seeing a specific guy every which way she turned… A crow had started to make her balcony railing its new home on a night.

"I think it's time for bed, Splint." She said, placing him into his cage. "I'd let you sleep on my other pillow again, but last night you proved you just can't be trusted."

Splinter squeaked, almost in protest, as she closed the cage door.

Laying down, twirling the charm of her bracelet, she had an awful feeling.

She felt like something terrible was going to happen. She just didn't know when…

But it was going to be bad.

 **-x-x-x-**

 **A/N: There will be more about the accident, etc, as the story progresses.**

 **It won't be long until she meets Damon, as those who read the original first six chapters already know.**

 **As you can see, I've added a bit more from the original write, just cause the accident just seemed to be brought up out of no-where in the original piece in like chapter 7 and it made me angry, so I figured I'd go back and edit and stuff. It also convinced me to change who Jason was and how that all comes about and everything.**

 **Thanks to all those who are reading this story. Highly appreciate it!**

 **~ fawningfantasy x**


	3. Family Hardships

**Chapter 3: Family Hardships.**

 **-x-x-x-**

" _Cain was angry,_

 _And he moved with a blood red fury._

 _So now one brother's dead,_

 _And one brother's born."_

Paper Route – Glass Heart Hymn.

 **-x-x-x-**

When Skylar awoke, she looked over to find the crow had left; just as she had expected.

Getting dressed and going downstairs to have breakfast with her family, she couldn't shake the feeling of unease that racked through her body. She wondered if she should tell Bonnie about everything. After all, it would prove that her friend wasn't just seeing things, that her Grams wasn't lying to her and that she is an extremely special human being. But, on the other hand, that could just freak Bonnie out more than she already was.

She knew that she definitely had to tell _someone_ , she could be in serious danger.

"Hello, sweetheart." Mayor Lockwood greeted his daughter, rising for his chair at the table to give her a hug. "Are you alright, you look worried."

Shaking the thoughts from her head, she gave her father a smile. "Yeah, I'm fine. Just a weird dream, I think."

"Alright." He smiled in return, "Take a seat, breakfast will be out in five minutes."

Mayor and Mrs Lockwood had made a rule that they had to all eat as a family at least twice a week. Tyler made constant attempts to get out of them, often trying to convince his parents that he had some form of football practice, but it would always end with an argument between him and his dad; making for a very awkward morning for everyone at the table.

As she sat down, she felt Tyler's hand graze her own. Glancing to her side, she locked eyes with him to see a look of concern. He knew her better than anyone, and he knew in that moment that she had lied to their father; he knew there was something bothering her and that it wasn't just a dream.

Shaking her head slightly so that only he would notice, Skylar made it clear to her brother that she didn't want to talk about it yet. She had no idea if she would ever be able to bring herself to talk about it; to find the words to explain what was happening. Until a year ago, she had shared every detail about every day with Tyler without hesitation, but he had changed; there was always the worry that he would mock her now.

Giving her hand a slight squeeze, Tyler took his hand away and carried on with the conversation that he and their mother had been having.

"I expect you both to keep an eye on each other at the comet tomorrow night." Their mother told them. "There are far too many animal attacks happening lately, that poor girl." She let out a sigh, looking towards her daughter. "You and your girlfriends always stay as a group; do you understand me? You too, Tyler, I don't want you or Matt wandering off alone."

"Yes, mom." The twins replied, as the chef for the morning placed their breakfast in front of them.

"I'll never be alone." Skylar confirmed. "Don't worry."

Mayor Lockwood scoffed. "Of course, you won't. Tyler, there is no need for you to be away from your sister tomorrow night, do I make myself clear?"

"Yes, sir." Tyler sighed.

"I don't care if your friends want to fool around, your sister is your priority." Their father grumbled, taking a bite of bacon.

Shuffling her food around her plate, Skylar mumbled. "You know, dad, if there really is an animal attacking everyone then Tyler is in just as much danger as I am…"

Noting the stern look she received in response, Skye bowed her head, understanding that her father wanted nothing more said on the matter. Glancing at her brother, she saw the thankful look in his eyes. Their father could be too hard on him sometimes.

 **-x-x-x-**

"And you're 100% sure that is was a crow that you saw last night?" Bonnie asked as she walked with Skylar through the school halls.

Skylar had managed to catch her just as lunch was starting, the need to tell her just too strong to fight. "Yeah… It was just sat outside my window all night." She explained. "Almost as though it was staring inside, how weird is that?"

She had decided to only mention the crow that she'd seen the past couple of nights, still trying to convince herself that everything else was just her mind playing tricks on her; there wasn't any guy stood outside her house, or in the woods.

"Skye, when I touched you and saw that crow… I got a _really_ bad feeling. I don't know what it means, but-"

"But it's probably bad." Skye cut in. "Something really bad, right?"

Bonnie looked at her with sympathy. "I think so. But who knows? Maybe I'm just going crazy." She offered.

"Maybe we both are…" She sighed, hoping that all the strange occurrences were coming to an end.

"Guys!" Caroline called, running up to the pair. "What's up?"

Skylar looked at her best friend, mind filled with the drunken state of her the night before. "Nothing really. What happened to you calling me this morning? I was worried when you didn't show up today."

"I'm sorry." Caroline said, sincerely, before a huge grin spread across her face. "I just couldn't stop thinking about that hot guy from The Grill."

"What hot guy?" Bonnie asked, as they all stopped at her locker.

Skylar furrowed her brows, wondering how Bonnie had managed to miss him. Surely her phone call hadn't taken that long.

Caroline sighed, "He left right after Skylar did. I didn't even get a chance to ask him _anything_." As she leaned against the locker, she zoned of for a moment, thinking of the mystery man. "You guys honestly should have seen him, he was _so hot_."

"Well, Mystic Falls is a small town." Skye reasoned. "I'm sure you'll manage to run into him again, Care."

"I better." She mumbled. "What were you guys talking about anyway?"

As Bonnie started to fill Caroline in about her whole witch situation, Skylar couldn't help but wonder if Care was going to be in trouble with this stranger that seemed to be lurking around every corner. She couldn't shake the bad vibe that she got, even if he was as attractive as Caroline said he was; looks were almost always deceiving.

"Crazy family, yes." Bonnie said. "Witches? I don't think so."

"Yeah, well, feel free to conjure up the name and number of that guy from last night." Caroline grinned.

Bonnie let out a laugh. "I didn't see him, you did. Why didn't you just talk to him?"

"I don't know, I was drunk." She snickered.

Raising a brow in disbelief, Skylar said "Cause that's ever stopped you. Usually that makes you even more talkative."

Mocking a glare in her best friends direction, she replied "Well, if you had seen him, you would understand. I think even _you_ would have blushed."

"I think _you_ were obviously drunker than I thought if you think any kind of face could have that effect on me." Skye smirked. "You're so easily enamoured."

"I am _not_." Caroline argued, playfully shoving Skye's shoulder.

Snickering, Skye raised her eyebrows. "You were planning your wedding to Stefan just yesterday and now all you can talk about is this mystery guy."

"That means nothing." She denied, as they waved goodbye to Bonnie and walked into the locker room to get changed for Gym.

 **-x-x-x-**

After school, the girls all went to The Grill to grab a bite to eat whilst they folded up the information leaflets for the comet tomorrow night. Caroline was organising the whole thing, as per usual; and as always, roped Skylar into helping out. The pair would be spending the next day setting everything up, making sure that there were enough candles for the town and where the best spot to watch the comet would be.

Skye didn't really mind, she supposed it would look good on a college application, but if she was being honest with herself, she wished that she could just sit back and relax; enjoy the events without any pressure.

After Caroline had tried to grill Elena for information, Bonnie had done her a kindness by bringing up a story that her Grams was telling her the night before. It was about how the comet was a sign of doom and the last time it went overhead there was a ton of death and carnage; a dark story but interesting none the less.

"Yeah," Caroline started, the sarcasm dripping from her voice. "And then you poured Grams another shot, and she told you about the aliens."

"I think it's interesting." Skylar defended Bonnie, "Hearing about this kind of stuff, I mean. It makes everything seem more magical and mystical. Imagine how boring life would be without stories like that."

"Thank you." Bonnie said, giving Caroline a smug look. "At least someone gets it."

Caroline just rolled her eyes, turning back to Elena. "Anyway, so then what?" She asked, bringing the conversation back to Stefan.

"So, then nothing." Elena replied.

"So, you and Stefan just _talked_?" Caroline questioned in disbelief. "All night? There was no sloppy first kiss or touchy feely of any kind?"

"Nope." Elena shrugged. "We didn't go there."

"Not even a handshake?" She sighed, frustrated. "I mean, Elena, we are your friends, okay, you're supposed to share the smut."

"We just talked for hours."

Exhaling, Skylar turned to Caroline. "Not everyone is obsessed with sex like you are, Care."

"You don't get to add to the conversation when you're apparently aiming to become a nun." She quipped.

"I'm not aiming to become a _nun_. I'm just not full of the raging hormones that you seem to be."

"Whatever," She sighed, "What is with all the blockage?" She asked Elena, "Just jump his bones already. Okay, it's easy. Boy likes girl, girl likes boy, _sex_."

"Profound." Elena said sarcastically, folding over one of the leaflets.

Furrowing her eyebrows, Skye watched as Elena zoned out, almost as though she was actually contemplating what Caroline had said. "You can't seriously be that easily swayed by her?" She scoffed.

But Elena never answered, collecting her things as she stood up.

"Where are you going?" Bonnie asked.

"Caroline's right." Elena answered. "It is easy. And if I sit here long enough, I'll end up talking myself out if it instead of starting the day the way I said I was going to."

Watching her walk off, Skye couldn't believe she had listened to Caroline. Even Care seemed surprised that her pep talk had actually worked.

"Wait," Skye said to the pair still with her. "Does that mean that she woke up today saying that she was going to bone Stefan?"

The three girls laughed before Caroline shot her a smug smile. "Told you that you were a nun."

"So many hormones around me… Yet I don't understand any of it." She sighed. "Maybe _I'm_ an alien?"

"Ask Bonnie's Grams." Care snickered.

Bonnie playfully hit Caroline's arm with one of the flyers. "Shut up."

 **-x-x-x-**

"Hey." She greeted Tyler as she arrived home that night. "Have you seen Vicki tonight? How is she doing?"

"I don't know." He replied, shortly, making his way up the stairs.

Her face scrunching with annoyance, she called after him. "Tyler! That's it? You don't know?"

"Yeah." He pressed, storming into his room. "That's it."

Hearing his door slam shut, she had the sudden urge to destroy everything around her. What the hell was his problem? Vicki had been in the hospital since the attack last night, but Tyler hadn't bothered to go and see her at all this entire day? Skye wasn't exactly Vicki's number 1 fan, but she deserved better than _that_.

Vicki could have died last night if Jeremy hadn't have found her. The wound on her neck something everyone was talking about, man that had seen it had called it the stuff of nightmares. She didn't understand why so many people were getting attacked by animals recently; a couple of campers being found just that morning.

But honestly, none of it made any sense to her. If it was an animal, why had it not been drawn to the rest of the party goers? Why hadn't it come over to the large crowd of potential victims a minute away from the attack? Why hadn't it attacked _her_ when she had wandered into the forest on her own? Nothing added up when it came to Vicki's attack; why did it only attack her neck? Surely a wild animal would have completely mauled her?

Skylar's mind kept forcing the idea of the Gilbert journals back into her head.

With something like this happening back then, no wonder his mind had jumped to the mythical immortal creature. But this was not a fantasy world, and she was _not crazy_.

Closing her bedroom door behind her, she heard Tyler exit his own room. She considered confronting him, telling him that if he insisted on sleeping with Vicki then he should at least do the decent thing and go to see her when she got hurt.

But she couldn't. Maybe she was just thinking the worst? Maybe, he just couldn't handle seeing Vicki in that state and had to avoid her at all costs. Surely he had managed to get information out of Matt throughout the day... She at least hoped that he had.

Skye really wanted to believe that her twin brother, her partner since birth, was still a decent guy deep down.

Not only that, but she had a horrible suspicion that if she was to confront Tyler with the rage that was building up within her, she would no doubt say something that she would regret at a later time.

Stroking Splinter's fur as she let him climb onto her shoulder, she looked out her window to see the crow that she already knew would be there. "What's happening Splinter?" She asked. "Nothing makes sense anymore."

 **-x-x-x-**

The next day, just as the sun was getting low, Caroline and Skylar were stood talking about how they were going to distribute the candles for the night. They had gotten small cupped candles for people to hold throughout the night, needing to overcome the melting wax issue.

Looking down at her phone to see how long they had until the comet was meant to appear, Skylar gave her opinion. "I don't think this is a very hard event to organise, Care. We'll just put the boxes of candles out in a few locations, light a few of the candles, everyone can light each other's.., You know, I light yours, you light Bonnie's, etc, etc." She explained. "It's not a difficult concept." She said, looking up from her phone when she realised how uncharacteristically quiet her best friend was being.

But Caroline wasn't there.

"Care?" She asked, turning around to find Caroline staring into the distance.

Walking up to her, she looked in between Caroline and the empty space that she was intensely watching in confusion. "Care? You okay?" She asked.

"It was him." Caroline replied quietly, almost as if talking to herself.

"Him?" Skye questioned. "Him as in..? Abe Lincoln? I'm going to need just a little but more information than that."

Hitting her on the arm, Caroline stormed back over to the candles. "Him as in the hot mystery guy from The Grill the other night."

"I missed him _again_?" Skye almost yelled, looking around to see if she could spot anyone that could possibly be him around the square. "I should have let my curiosity get the best of me at the damn Grill, I can't believe this keeps happening."

"You are _seriously_ missing out." She smirked, before it faded into a confused frown. "But I don't understand where he went… He was stood _right there_ and then just suddenly vanished."

Shrugging, Skylar sighed dramatically. "Maybe your lust filled brain is starting to drive you mad. It's so _sad_ , and yet so _plausible_."

"I am _not mad_." She whacked Skye with a leaflet, chasing after her, laughing.

"Crazy Caroline!" Skye mocked once she was far enough away from her. "Some great alliteration right there, kind of poetic, don't you think?"

"You suck!" Caroline called after her and she giggled, returning to the boxes of candles.

 **-x-x-x-**

As the comet finally came into view, the small group came together.

Sitting down at the table, Skylar pulled out her sketchpad, deciding to draw the scene above her. Drawing had been a shared passion of the Lockwood twins since they were little. As their relationship drew more and more strained, their sketches became few and far between. It almost seemed wrong to Skye, to carry on with something that used to connect the pair when they hardly saw eye to eye anymore.

However, the comet only occurred every 145 years, so Skylar took the opportunity to pick up art once more for the night; since she would never see this phenomenon again. She refused to miss the chance to capture the picture, as she sees it, forever. The stars, the moon, the comet beautifully crossing the night sky… It was so amazingly perfect that she could never let it pass her by.

"Can you hold this for me?" She asked Tyler, holding her candle out to him.

"Yeah, of course." He responded, taking the candle, already knowing what she wanted from him. As he turned to look back up at the sky, he held the candle at the right angle to make sure the paper was lit perfectly for her to see.

Before she started to sketch, she quickly gave Matt's arm a comforting squeeze when she realised he was staring longingly over at Elena, who was talking to Stefan.

"Little bit higher, Ty." She laughed, noticing his hand starting to droop as he spoke to Caroline. "If I spend my time sketching out this picture, just for you to set my sketchbook on fire, I'm going to set _you_ on fire."

Tyler quickly righted his hold on the candle, sheepishly saying "Sorry."

"How and Earth can this be a sign of death?" She asked Bonnie. "It's amazing."

Shaking her head with a slight laugh, Bonnie sighed. "I don't know, Skye. Grams had quite a bit to drink that night, who knows if she actually meant anything by what she said."

 **-x-x-x-**

Once it started getting late, the group decided to head into The Grill to have a meal together before having to return home for the night. Though, that was going to be longer than any of them expected, as Jeremy Gilbert approached them to inform everyone that Vicki Donovan was missing.

"She probably found someone else to party with." Tyler dead-panned. "Sorry pill pusher, I guess you've been replaced."

As Elena turned to question Jeremy about the pill pusher comment, Skye turned her attention to her twin brother. "What the hell, Ty?" She whispered, grabbing hold of his arm. "She's missing and the most you can do is make a dig at Jeremy?"

Tyler simply rolled his eyes at his sister, choosing to ignore her and go for Jeremy once more. "She's never gonna go for you."

One thing that the Lockwood's had in common was their random temperament; going from a cheerful and happy disposition to plain furious and aggravated within seconds. It would often give people pause, trying to figure out what was wrong with them, but the siblings themselves never quite understood their problem.

While they argued about how Vicki had slept with Jeremy, Skylar decided to tune everybody out, not wanting to say anything she may regret. She wondered where the elder Donovan had disappeared to, she couldn't have gone far. Who even had the courage to wander off on their own so soon after they'd gone through such a vicious attack?

"And I didn't even have to force her into it." Jeremy sneered.

That caught Skylar's attention.

As everybody split up to search for Vicki, Skye quickly dragged her brother off with her. "What the hell did he mean by 'force her into it', Tyler?" She seethed, trying her best to keep her voice down as to not attract attention.

"He's just a dumb kid looking for attention." He scoffed, trying to walk away from her. "Don't think too far into it."

"No." She stressed, grabbing is arm and turning him back to face her. "Jeremy Gilbert is _many_ things right now, but he would not accuse someone of that for no reason. Now what the _fuck_ did you do, Tyler?"

Snatching his arm back, he growled "It's none of your business, Skye. Just leave it."

Watching him start to walk away, she followed him down the quiet street, unable to believe what her brother was turning into. "Who the hell are you!?" She yelled, no longer able to control her anger, no longer concerned with who heard her. "When did you become this person? I mean, I get it, dad can be a real dick to you but _come on_." She ranted as her brother turned to look at her with wide eyes. "You have a _sister_ ; how could you even _contemplate_ doing something like that to a girl!? How can you treat girls the way that you do?"

"Stop it, Skye." He forced out, his own anger boiling from within. "You don't even know what you're talking about."

"What the fuck is wrong with you?" Skylar couldn't believe any of this. "Would you be fine if someone did that to me?"

"Skye.."

"No, Tyler. What does she mean to you?" She asked, getting in his face. "You string Vicki along like she's your girlfriend, but do you actually give a shit about her? You obviously tried to force her into God knows what, you left her _alone_ in the _woods_ when she was drunk. Hell, after she was attacked you didn't _once_ go to the hospital to see how she was doing. Did you even ask Matt how she was?"

As Tyler looked to the floor in shame, she knew her answer.

Before she could stop herself, she felt her hand lash out.

She slapped him right across the face.

He looked at her in shock, but she couldn't bring herself to care. He wasn't the brother that she remembered, the brother that she used to admire so much, the brother she had been inseparable from. That brother, her brother, was dead; gone. She didn't recognise the guy who stood in front of her just then.

"It's time you grew the hell up, Tyler. Your actions have consequences, dad won't pay for everything." She sneered, storming off.

Finding a small street away from the people gathered close by for the comet, she sunk to the floor against a wall. She felt empty, as though a large part of her had died inside. Her twin brother, her other half, was a complete stranger to her now. She felt the tears start to slide down her face. She wasn't the type to cry so easily, but it felt as though her reality had shattered before her eyes.

"You alright?" She heard a man ask.

Gasping, she looked up, wiping her tears away. Finally focusing on the man in front of her, she recognised the clothing she had constantly seen him wear. It was the guy from The Grill, the guy Caroline was searching for, the guy she was almost certain had been watching her from afar. He was stood directly in front of her, a look of concern gracing his features.

Sniffling, Skylar rose to her feet. "Yeah, I'm okay."

"You sure?" He asked with a raised eyebrow. "You don't look so fine."

"Yeah." She answered, forcing a smile onto her face. "It's okay, just, family drama."

The man sighed, "Not _that_ I can understand." He assured, noticing her look of worry at the situation that she was in. "I didn't mean to startle you, I'm Damon."

Looking at his outstretched hand, she mumbled. "Damon…"

The name brought a few thoughts to her mind. When Stefan had been talking to her about his own dickhead brother, he'd mentioned that his name was Damon. The fact that they both seemed to appear in the town at the exact same time didn't seem like a coincidence.

"As in, Damon Salvatore?" Skylar asked.

Damon smirked. "You've heard of me?"

Shrugging, she felt the sudden urge to get far away from the man in front of her. "Not much." Stefan hadn't sung his brother's praises, and by the smirk on his face and the look of utter deceit in his eyes, she was inclined to believe the worst.

"Well, I'd be happy to tell you more." He said, shifting closer to her.

Skylar was deadly aware of the wall that she was already pressed against. If she wanted to get away, then she would have to do it quickly, before he managed to get any closer to her.

"As wonderful as that sounds, I should really get going." She said, trying to keep her tone light and friendly, but barely managing to.

But her attempt to flee failed, a hand coming to rest on the wall beside her head. "You don't want to get to know me?" Damon asked, giving the Lockwood girl a once over that made her shiver. He was _too close_.

"You know." She started, voice slightly failing. "I have a friend that would _love_ to get to know you. If you let me move, I might just introduce you."

Of course, there was no way she would be introducing her best friend to the man who stood before her, a mere whisper of air between them. Damon Salvatore radiated danger, but there was only a part of her that was scared, a large part wanting to fight, to rip this guy's head off for smirking at her the way that he was.

"How about you tell me your name first?" He reasoned, the smirk only seeming to widen.

Was it safe to tell him her name? She reasoned with herself, trying to figure out a fake name, but pondering the idea that if he knew who she was then he would let her go. Nobody would want the heat of doing something to the mayor's daughter.

"Skylar." She answered. "Skylar Lockwood."

"The mayor's daughter?" He asked, giving her another once over that left her feeling exposed. "How fortunate."

"Fortunate?" She asked, face scrunching in confusion. "In what way?"

Before she could blink, his face was mere centimetres from hers, his eyes starting deep into her own. "I think you want me to walk you home, Little Lockwood." Damon muttered, his tone smug.

Why the _fuck_ would she want that? "I think you're a bit presumptuous, Mr Salvatore." She sneered, placing a hand on his chest as an attempt to gain some much-needed distance.

Damon stood frozen, a look of disbelief crossing his features, which just seemed to anger the girl in front of him more. Did he really just assume that would work on her? That he could smirk and give her flirty eyes and she would just invite him back to her home? Were the girls her age really that easy?

"That's a nice bracelet." Damon dead-panned, his eyes trained on the piece of jewellery around her wrist. "Where'd you get it?"

"I'm not sure why you're suddenly taking an interest in my accessories, but I really don't want to have any kind of conversation with you right now." She responded, pushing harder on his chest, the part of her that was once afraid now filled with rage like the rest of her.

As if the universe was suddenly kind to her, she heard her brother's voice. "Skye?"

They may have been having serious problems recently, but she had never been so happy to see him before in her entire life.

Within seconds, Damon had backed away from her, giving her enough room to swiftly escape into Tyler's arms.

"Are you okay?" He asked, holding her at arm's length to check her over. "What's wrong?"

"I'm fine." She responded, glancing back to see that Damon Salvatore was no gone. "Let's just go…" She said, wondering how he was able to leave without either one of the twins noticing.

 **-x-x-x-**

Damon watched from afar as the Lockwood children returned to the boy's car.

There was only one way that Skylar Lockwood could have resisted his compulsion; that bracelet was laced with vervain. He wasn't sure how anyone here had managed to get access to the herb, but it was the only explanation.

Frustrated that his plan had to be delayed, he wiped a hand down his face in annoyance.

He would have to go for Plan B, he thought, glancing over to the blonde that was walking around.

Damon could wait until the Founder's Party to get into the Lockwood Mansion if he really had to. He needed that crystal, he wasn't going to leave without it.

The elder Salvatore doubted that he could seduce Skylar the human way anymore, unable to remove her memories of tonight. But he would wait, try to find a moment where she would be without the infuriating piece of jewellery.

Considering the idea of Stefan giving her it, he quickly shook the thoughts from his mind. His younger brother wouldn't have known about his need to get into that building.

Maybe the whole thing was a coincidence.

 **-x-x-x-**

After the run in with Stefan's older brother, Tyler had decided the safest move was to go home. Luckily, Stefan had found Vicki and brought her back to Matt; she was safe. She had wandered off in a drugged-up haze.

Skylar considered talking to Stefan the next day, try to ask him about Damon, get some information out of someone who already meant so much to her friend. Stefan seemed trustworthy, surely, he would gladly open up?

Damon, on the other hand, came off as predatory. Skye's mind overflowed with thoughts of the past few nights, the feeling that she got when she was in the woods; like she was prey. And by the sheer confusion on Damon's face, she concluded that he wasn't faced with rejection often.

Looking into her mirror as she tied up her hair, she froze, noticing a dark figure standing on her balcony.

Damon Salvatore.

Spinning around, she came to find that he wasn't there.

Walking tentatively over, she closed the balcony doors; locking them as they shut. Skylar looked out of them to see that there was nobody there. But she wasn't about to be the idiot girl who you see in horror movies who goes _towards_ the possible danger, Skye was staying in her room for the remainder of the night; with the light firmly on.

Taking Splinter out of his cage, she placed him down on the pillow next to her. "You're being forgiven for now, Splint. If you see anything, let me know."

He gave her a small lick on the forehead as she laid down, almost in an attempt to comfort on purpose.

It took what felt like forever until she finally felt tired enough to sleep. But just as she was on the edge, her phone vibrating from the bedside table caused her to jolt fully awake again.

 _Guess who finally got a chance to meet the hot mystery guy? Don't wait up! – C xx_

Panic sunk into Skylar's stomach, thinking of Caroline going anywhere with who she was _sure_ was Damon Salvatore. She hoped that her best friend would be okay, knowing that if she tried to get her to stay away from him, she'd ignore her. Looking at the gym bag on her chair, Skye remembered that it was cheerleading practice tomorrow. There was no way that the blonde would miss tomorrow… She better be at school.

 _Please be okay, Care._

 **-x-x-x-**

" _There's a ghost in the mirror,_

 _I'm afraid more than ever._

 _My feet have led me straight into my grave._

 _Oh Lord have you walked away?_

 _Oh Lord have you walked away from me?"_

 **-x-x-x-**

 **A/N:**

 **Thanks for reading! Highly appreciate it!**

 **Yes, I decided to change it to third person so that I could include some Damon thoughts in there. I'm so sorry to those who have to re-read it cause a LOT of it is the same. I'm so sorry.**

 **Thank you for sticking with me so far.**

 **~ fawningfantasy x**


	4. Where the Hell is Caroline?

**Chapter 4: Where the Hell is Caroline?**

 **-x-x-x-**

" _Further than I've been before,_

 _Touched your hand but nothing more,_

 _No-one's ever looked at me that way."_

Matthew and the Atlas – Counting Paths.

 **-x-x-x-**

Expecting to wake up to a phone call from her hyperactive best friend, Skylar was confused to wake up to complete silence.

She hadn't so much as received a text message from Caroline since last night. It wasn't like her, at all. Skye had fully been expecting to her the blonde's voice squealing down the phone to her about how the 'mystery guy' had rocked her world and back again.

After a few attempts to call her with no response, Skylar started to worry, pacing back and forth in her bedroom. It was almost time for school, so close to first period that Skye herself had to rush to get ready and catch a lift from her mother to the school; just arriving in time for the first bell to ring.

Having to endure a full car ride alone with her mother was a rare occurrence, but one that was necessary for that morning. Caroline was MIA and Tyler hadn't really spoken to her since they had arrived home. The fact she hadn't woken up to him demanding a jog brought a slight pain to her chest.

Walking into he classroom, she noticed that Caroline was nowhere to be seen. Panic struck her so hard that she lost her breath for a second. Hoping that she was just being paranoid, she decided that she would wait until break to phone Liz and ask her what was happening. Surely, if anything had happened to Caroline, the sheriff would have come straight to her first? As long as Caroline's mother was nowhere in the immediate area, she prayed that it meant Caroline was safe.

Sighing, she glanced at the empty seat beside her, hoping that her best friend was just late.

 **-x-x-x-**

As third period came ever closer, Skylar started to feel severely on edge.

Caroline hadn't replied to any of her messages and she couldn't get through to the sheriff yet. Care had never gone silent before, even when she was ill, she would usually send Skye a ten-page essay on what was wrong with her and why it made the entire world a darker place.

As Stefan made his way into the French classroom, Skye couldn't help but notice Bonnie's eyes fall to the floor.

"Bon?" Skye asked, placing a comforting hand on her arm. "Are you okay? What's wrong?"

Shaking her head with a small smile, Bonnie quietly replied, "It's nothing. Just something I'm dealing with."

Tilting her head to the side with a raised brow, Skye sighed. "You realise that it's not that easy to lie to me, right?"

"After pushing me to go after him, Bonnie suddenly has a bad feeling about Stefan." Elena explained, sounding exasperated from Skylar's other side.

"A bad feeling?" Skye repeated. "What kind of bad feeling? Are you sure you didn't just eat something that you shouldn't have?" It seemed pretty ridiculous to decide Stefan was to be avoided just because of a feeling.

Bonnie sighed, clearly agitated. "It wasn't like it. When I touched him, I felt…" Trailing off, she shook her head and focused back on the textbook in front of her. "Never mind. It doesn't matter."

"When you touched him?" Skye whispered in question. She remembered how accurate Bonnie had been about the night she had touched her own hand, thinking that maybe there was more to this feeling than originally thought. "What kind of feeling was it?"

Looking unsure, Bonnie turned to the Lockwood girl. "Promise me that you won't make a joke?" She asked, clearly unsettled by whatever feeling it was that she'd had.

"I promise." Skye assured. "I trust your judgement."

With a small smile and a quick glance around to make sure that nobody else was listening, she leant in to whisper. "It felt like _death_."

The pit in Skylar's stomach only worsened with her words. The animal attacks had started the same time that the Salvatore brothers had moved into town, but that had to be a coincidence, right? Clearly, there was no way the presence of the two new residents of Mystic Falls were connected to the attacks.

Nothing seemed to make sense to her anymore.

 **-x-x-x-**

Once lunch had been and gone, Skye's mind was running faster than it ever had before. Caroline still hadn't replied to any of her messages; there had been no communication what so ever. Skylar just knew that something was wrong. She would give her until cheerleading practice, something she _never_ missed. If Caroline didn't make an appearance then she would go round to her house to check on her, if all else failed, she would take the sheriff to the Salvatore Boarding House.

Sighing, she walked into Biology to find that they would be working in pairs for the day. The words in bold handwriting written on the board at the front. Looking around the room, she noticed Stefan sat alone at one of the desks.

She stood for a moment, debating her next move. Was talking to him a wise decision? What if Bonnie's feeling meant that Stefan was just as dangerous as his brother, but just better at hiding it?

"Hey." Skye cautiously greeted, walking over to his desk.

"Hey, Skylar." He replied, the smile on his face conveying his confusion at her approach.

Glancing back at the board before returning her gaze to his own, she asked. "Want to be partners? Caroline hasn't shown up today and I think Elena would appreciate the people she cares about making some kind of effort for friendship?"

Stefan nodded, looking down at the textbook in front of him, his smile becoming slightly more genuine. "Sure, that'd be great." He replied, pulling out the chair next to him for her to sit on.

"She seems super happy since you arrived, by the way." Skye said, trying to start off with some light conversation before she had to ask him about his brother. "It's nice to see her smile again, I was starting to wonder if it was even possible anymore."

"Yeah, I'm glad I came here." He said, his eyes sincere. "Elena is a great girl, she deserves happiness."

"That she does." She smiled in return.

Studying her, Stefan noticed as she fidgeted with the bracelet on her wrist, his features growing concerned. "Are you… Okay? Skye?"

"I'm fine." She sighed, running a hand through her hair. "I guess I'm just worried about Caroline."

"Is she alright?"

Shrugging her shoulders, she looked at her phone for what felt like the hundredth time that day. "I don't know. She hasn't replied to any of my messages, she hasn't called me back. Care usually texts me every ten minutes and that is on a _slow_ day. But today, I've heard nothing; radio silence."

"Do you need someone to go with you to check on her?" He asked, eyebrows furrowed. "If you do, I'll be happy to help. Just let me know."

"Thank you, Stefan." She said, genuinely. She paused for a moment, deciding that now was the right time to broach the subject of his older brother. "Honestly, I could actually use your help with something…"

Eyebrows raised in question, Stefan turned to give her his full attention. "Anything you need."

"Can you tell me about your brother?" She asked, noticing his jaw tense. "Damon?"

It took him a few moments to compose himself before he could respond. "What makes you ask about him?"

Sighing, she shook her head, trying to sort her thoughts. "I met him last night." She confessed. "He seemed awfully full of himself and to be quite honest he… He made me feel pretty uneasy."

"He didn't… Hurt you, or anything, did he?" He asked, giving her a once over to check for any marks, leaning in to ensure nobody else around them could hear.

"No." Skye assured. "No. He didn't hurt me. But I'm sure that Caroline went home with him last night." She explained, hoping that Stefan would give her some kind of idea about his brother. "I haven't heard from her since and I just… I just need to know if I'm right to be as worried as I am."

Stefan's eyes showed thinly veiled panic, trying to hide his emotions from the girl sat in front of him. "I'm sure that Caroline is fine…" He trailed off, glancing out the window. "If you want, I'll contact him as soon as the lesson is over… Try to find out if he knows where your friend is."

"I would really appreciate it." She smiled, apologetically. "I'm sorry that I brought him up, I know you two don't exactly get along."

"It's alright. Damon…" He said, turning back to her. "Damon is just a bit of a sore spot. But I understand why you would be worried. I don't know exactly how long he plans on staying, I just hope that it's not for much longer."

With a small smile, Skye decided that a change in subject was needed. Otherwise, the lesson was going to be extremely awkward and uncomfortable to get through.

"So," She started. "I heard that my brother threw a football at you while your back was turned. I'm sorry about that, it seems that whenever my dad goes out of town for a few days, Ty just needs someone to focus his aggression on."

A small laugh escaped him as the smile returned to his face. "Yeah, it's alright, I think I handled it just fine."

"I heard that too." She laughed. "Good for you, I was told it was a highly impressive catch. Not many people manage to make my brother look like an idiot."

"Well, I used to play football a long time ago."

Tilting her head to the side, Skye pursed her lips as she asked. "Has Elena already tried to convince you to join the team?"

A smirk, much kinder than that of his older brother's, appeared on his face. "You know her pretty well."

"She'll just want what's best for you." She explained. "You've got to make more friends some time, Stefan. Although, I do have to admire your attempt to just phase yourself into her group of friends."

"I try." He shrugged. "Would you prefer I became friends with your brother?"

Scrunching up her face, she scoffed. "I'm surprised anyone is friends with my brother anymore."

"You said when your father goes out of town that he focuses his aggression on someone else… Who was it before me?"

Twiddling the charm on her bracelet. "Usually me." She confided. "I don't know what it is… When my father goes away for a couple of nights a month, Tyler and I just can't control ourselves."

"Both of you?" Stefan asked, confused.

"Yeah. Maybe it's my brother's attitude, but I usually get a lot angrier too." She explained, thinking back to the past year.

Stefan let out an exaggerated sigh. "Remind me not to piss you off, then."

A small laugh was exchanged between the pair as Skylar whispered "Noted." The teacher finally gaining everyone's attention.

 **-x-x-x-**

After school, Skylar tried to call Caroline once more before changing into her cheerleading outfit. But once again, there was no answer.

Walking past the football team, she noticed Tanner giving her brother a hard time. Usually she would go to see if he was alright, but it didn't feel like her place anymore. It felt strange not talking to Tyler all day; as though they didn't even exist to each other.

"Have you managed to get through to Caroline yet?" Bonnie asked as Skye sat down to stretch.

"Not a word." She replied. "I'm going to have to go round to her house. She wouldn't miss practice. Hell, if she was missing a leg she'd hop here."

With a small laugh, Bonnie said "Maybe Elena will have heard from her?"

"Maybe." Skye sighed, knowing that there was a very slim chance that if she hadn't her from Caroline that Elena would have. "I'll call her and see."

But before she could pick up her phone, Elena made herself known.

"Oh my God!" Bonnie squealed, pulling her into a hug. "You're here!"

"You're sure you want to come back to the stress of having Caroline order you around?" Skye laughed, hugging her after Bonnie released their friend.

"Yep. I can't be sad girl forever." Elena replied. "The only way to get things back to the way they were are to do things that were." She explained, before turning to Bonnie. "Oh, and you're coming to dinner tonight."

"I am?" Bonnie smiled.

"Mhm. You, me and Stefan." Elena said smugly, Bonnie's smile vanishing. "You have to give him a chance."

As they had a short discussion, Skye looked around to see if she could possibly see Caroline anywhere. Hoping that the blonde would arrive any second, moaning about how she couldn't deal with how ill she felt for the day; how Skye hoped that Care had just been ill.

"Hey, Skye. Can you make it?" Elena asked, breaking the girl out of her thoughts.

"Ehh, yeah. I should be able to."

"Good." She smiled. "It'll be nice to have someone else on Stefan's side."

Nodding, she looked over to the football field. "I'd rather do anything than have dinner at my own house tonight, anyway."

"Is everything alright?" Elena asked, concerned. "I haven't seen you and Tyler even look at each other all day."

"I don't know. I'm still trying to figure out how this has all happened, to be honest. One day he just changed, I don't even know why." Skye sighed.

Placing a hand on her shoulder, Elena gave her a reassuring smile. "He'll come around. He's just going through a stupid jock phase, I'm sure he'll go back to normal eventually."

"I hope so." Skye told her, rising up to her feet, phone in hand. "I'm going to try Caroline again, this is getting ridiculous now."

But before she could so much as press a button, loud music signalled the arrival of a car. Glancing over, she noticed Caroline in the passenger's seat, being dropped off by the guy Skye was praying she hadn't been with; Damon Salvatore.

"Oh my God." Bonnie said. "That must be the mystery guy from The Grill."

"That's not a mystery guy." Elena said, standing up next to the two girls. "That's-"

"Damon Salvatore." Skylar dead-panned.

Not paying attention to anything else they were saying, Skye approached Caroline as she kissed Damon and got out of the car. Giving the Lockwood girl a bright smile, raising her eyebrows as she took her sunglasses off, Caroline smirked.

"Sorry I'm late." She said. "I was… _Busy_."

"I'm sure you were." Skye said, sending a glare in Damon's direction as he smirked at her. "So busy you couldn't so much as text me back."

Giving her a smug smile, Damon faced the road and drove off, leaving Skylar aggravated.

"Calm down, Skye." Caroline laughed. "I'm alright, it's not like I was murdered."

"Well I didn't know that, did I?" The girl snapped. "Why didn't you so much as send me a text to let me know you were okay? You tell me you're going somewhere with a strange guy and then go off the radar? What the hell, Care?"

She sighed in frustration. "God forbid you could just be happy for me. I got the other Salvatore brother, Skye. The hotter one, might I add. Can't you just celebrate my happiness?"

Shaking her head, Skylar tried her best to keep her anger under control, knowing Caroline, there was no way she'd even show a hint of remorse at making her worry. "Fine…" She trailed off, glancing at Caroline's neck. "Since when do you wear scarves to practice? Ashley tried to wear one two weeks ago and you almost threw her off the team."

"Since when is it weird that I accessorize?" She giggled, motioning for Skye to take her place for practice.

Something was off, Skye knew that, she just didn't know what it was.

 **-x-x-x-**

Thankfully, it wasn't long into the dinner that night that Stefan had managed to win Bonnie over. He was talking to her about the Salem witches and she seemed to be drawn into his thoughts on the topic. Bonnie appeared to be over the moon to have someone who had actual knowledge on the subject, rather than her friends who only knew how to make awkward jokes.

Bonnie had been having a hard time recently, seeing the same numbers over and over in her head all throughout the day; drawing them in all of her classes. It was nice for her friends to see her relax about the whole witch thing for once since her Grams had told her about it all.

Just as the conversation came to a close, the doorbell rang. Elena excused herself to answer it, Stefan following soon after; worry clear in his eyes. When Bonnie suggested to Skye that they move into the living room for tea and coffee, Skylar waved her on.

"You go." She said. "I'll just clean up a little bit."

It was an unspoken rule between Skylar and her friends that she would be allowed to clear up when she was at their houses. Being a Lockwood, she never had to lift a finger at home, her parents often hiring people to do all the work for them. Skylar longed to feel normal, to gain experiences that everyone else had. So, her friends humoured her, allowing her to do the dishes and tidy away the things used.

As she cleared the last plate of food into the trash, she heard Caroline's laugh come from the hallway. Turning to see her friend, she stiffened.

Icy blue eyes stared into her own, mere inches separating them once more.

"I didn't mean to startle you." Damon smirked.

"Are you sure about that?" She sneered, leaning back into the kitchen counter. "Because you managed to walk in here without making any noise, you're stood pretty damn close to me right now… And you didn't say anything to me until I had already turned around."

Smirk widening, he leaned in closer. "Maybe you just weren't paying attention."

"So high school girls are your thing then?" She quipped, sliding away from him and across to the other side of the kitchen. "You must be a very _interesting_ guy, I haven't been able to speak to Caroline at all today." She said, opening up a cupboard and taking out a few mugs.

"Ahh, you're the one whose been blowing up her phone." He replied, taking the mugs off her and filling a few of them with coffee.

Confused, Skye glanced between his face and the freshly poured coffee, wondering what Damon was up to. "Yeah, well, when your best friend who never shuts up suddenly goes off the radar, you start to worry about her."

"She is quite the talker." Damon chuckled, his face feigning kindness. "I'm guessing she shares most things with you?"

Squinting her eyes at the elder Salvatore, Skylar couldn't help but feel cautious at the sudden attitude adjustment. His smirk was gone, replaced by a kind smile. His eyes were no longer hard and conniving… But she was certain that he was up to something.

"Well we've been friends forever, so, she tends to lean my way when she needs to talk about something." Narrowing her eyes in suspicion, she finished with, "And yet, since you've spent the night with her, I've hardly managed to get ten words out of her."

"Should I be worried?" He whispered, mockingly cupping his mouth so only Skylar would hear him.

"Should I be?" She asked, clearly, raising an eyebrow.

Damon's face hardened, realising that he wasn't going to get through to the young Lockwood for the time being.

"Hey." Stefan greeted, breaking the pair out of their staring contest. "You need any help, Skylar?"

Not wanting to be alone with Damon for much longer, she sighed in relief. "Yeah." She responded, noting the way Stefan's eyes never left his brother. "You can help your brother take the coffee into the living room."

She could feel the tension between the two siblings as she swiftly left the room, marching straight up to Caroline and pulling her in for a hug.

"There you are." Caroline grinned, releasing her best friend. "I was wondering where you were."

Skylar's eyes drifted to the scarf wrapped around Caroline's neck. "I could say the same about you." She rushed out. "Is that another scarf?"

Damon brushed past her, stealing the blonde's attention back before Skylar could get a response.

Bonnie motioned for Skye to sit next to her, the latter not taking her eyes off of Damon and Caroline the whole time. Stefan's glares towards his brother kept her on edge, she didn't trust him in the slightest. And from how tense Stefan's shoulders seemed to be, Skye had a feeling that there was something the younger Salvatore wasn't telling her.

He had told her that Damon wasn't a good guy, leaving out any details. And for once, Skylar believed that the details would be extremely important.

 **-x-x-x-**

About an hour later, the group were all having a conversation about Elena and cheerleading; how she didn't really seem to enjoy doing it anymore.

"Oh, it's just cause her parents died." Caroline said, making Skye's eyes widen. She wasn't going to go there. "Yeah, I mean, she's just totally going through a blah phase. She used to be _way_ more fun."

Catching her eye, Skylar mouthed. ' _What the fuck?'_

Looking between her best friend and Elena, the blonde realised what she'd just said. "And I say that with complete sensitivity."

Damon turned to Elena, looking remorseful. "I'm sorry Elena, I know what it's like to lose both your parents. In fact, Stefan and I have watched almost every single person we've ever cared about die."

"We don't need to get into that right now, Damon." Stefan chimed in, clearly agitated.

"Ah, you know what, you're right Stef. I'm sorry." He started. "The last thing I wanted to do was bring _her_ up." He smirked.

There it was. The proof Skylar needed that Damon Salvatore was up to something. She couldn't really tell what it was, wondering if he was trying to get in between Elena and Stefan? Not wanting to really deal with the awkward exchanges that were no doubt away to follow, she offered to do the dishes.

"Oh no, Skye, you don't have to." Elena said, starting to stand.

"Sit back down, Elena." She commanded. "At my house we have people to do _everything_. Let me experience real life."

They both laughed as she conceded and sat back down with a smile.

After just a few minutes of Skylar rinsing off the dishes, she heard a voice enter the kitchen.

"One more." Damon called, holding up a glass.

Holding out her hand, she gave him a quick thank you as she tried to take the glass from his hand. But her fingers were wet and slippery, the glass slipping through them instantly. Closing her eyes, she waited for the inevitable smash to echo around the kitchen.

But it never came.

Opening her eyes, she saw Damon holding the glass out to her once more, a small smile on his face.

"Wow." She said, taking the glass. "Insane reflexes Salvatore. Is it your entire family that has those or just you and Stefan?" She asked, thinking back to the stories of Stefan catching the football today at school.

"We had a father who demanded the very best." He replied, watching her as he leant against the counter.

"I can understand that." She replied, thinking about her own father. "Father's seem to give their sons a hard time, huh?"

Damon sighed, shrugging his shoulder. "So, it would seem."

And for just a moment, Skylar wondered if that was the reason Damon was how he was. After all, Tyler was turning into a complete ass and she was sure it was him breaking under the pressure their father put onto him. Maybe Damon was actually a good guy, deep _deep_ down.

"So, what's it like being the mayor's daughter?" He asked. "He give you a hard time?"

Shaking her head with a small smile, she handed him one of the dishes to go into the dishwasher "No." She said. "Honestly, he's pretty amazing with me. It's Tyler that he seems to expect the most from."

"I'm sure he'll get over it." Damon replied.

"Have you?"

Giving a quick smile that seemed forced, he swiftly changed the subject. "So, what about you, then? Where do your issues lie?"

"My mother." Skye answered, honestly, suddenly wondering if a genuine conversation might bring the real Damon to the front, hoping to catch him out for even just a second. "I fully expect her to have at least five guys lined up for me to meet at the Founders Party."

"There isn't already a lucky guy in your life?" He asked, seeming genuinely surprised. "I thought for sure that bracelet you wear was a gift from some love-sick fool."

"I guess he's love-sick in a way." She chuckled. "My dad actually gave me this just over a year ago. There was this flower that I had found on one of our family trips that I just loved. I went back to the field every day we were there, I just wanted to experience that scent for the rest of my life." She explained. "But there was hardly any of the flowers left, so he got one of them made into a bracelet for me to keep."

Damon seemed caught in deep thought, staring down at the piece of jewellery. "Very thoughtful of him." He pondered. "Do you ever take it off?"

"Not really." She shrugged. "To shower? I suppose…"

He nodded, placing the last plate into the dishwasher.

"And for football games." Skye added as an afterthought. "Caroline refuses to let anyone accessorise on the team unless we can all match."

"So, you won't be wearing it tomorrow night?" He asked, following her over to the kitchen island.

Confused, she sat down on one of the stools, turning to face him with questioning eyes. "Why do you ask?"

"No reason." He smiled, sitting down next to her. "So, what about living in the Lockwood Mansion, what's that like?"

"Okay, Salvatore. What do you want?" She asked, no longer buying his nice guy act. "You want me to invite you back to my house? What, you're going to steal a bunch of expensive family heirlooms before you skip town?"

Eyebrows furrowed, he let out a short laugh. "What makes you so sure I'm leaving town?"

"Are you kidding?" She asked, eyebrow raised. "You're the mystery guy who sweeps into town in a leather jacket, fools around with a couple of high school girls so that he doesn't have to make any kind of commitment." She explained. "Forgive me for thinking you're not the type to settle down in one town."

Glancing at the living room, he sighed. "You caught me, I'm a traveller." He said. "But I have enough money that I don't need to steal anything."

"Fair enough." Skye shrugged. "So, you're only here to mess with Stefan's relationship then?"

"I don't-"

"You know what I'm talking about." She stressed. "Don't try and deny it. Bringing up his ex-girlfriend, giving Elena flirty little looks… Why are you doing it?"

Shaking his head, he folded up one of the placemats. "It's a long, complicated story."

"I bet I already know the summary." She sighed dramatically, putting the placemats away as he folded them.

Raising up three fingers, he said "You get three guesses."

"You both dated the same girl?" She asked with a smirk.

"Are you a detective?" He leaned in to whisper.

Leaning forward, she whispered back, mockingly. "I don't even think you try to be subtle."

"Guilty." Damon smirked.

Feeling herself getting lost in his clear blue eyes; she found them almost hypnotising in a way. She didn't know if it was the human version of Damon coming out or if she was just tired, but she suddenly didn't feel as cautious around him as she had until that moment. Realising how close they were, she drew myself back, knowing that Damon was not a guy to be interested in. And even if he was, she would never be capable of hurting Caroline that way.

"What happened? Your sibling rivalry drive her away?" She snorted.

Damon kept his focus on the placemats he was folding. "She died in a fire. It was a tragic loss."

Immediately feeling awful about the joke she'd just made, she reached over and gave his hand a slight squeeze in comfort. "I'm sorry." She whispered.

His features twisted into confusion, looking from their hands up to her eyes. "What for?"

"You lost someone you cared about… It's not something that you get over easily." She explained. "I'm sorry you had to go through that."

Damon looked at her with an expression that she couldn't quite read; the air between them shifting slightly.

Skylar had found the human part of Damon that she had been looking for, but now she had no idea how to react to it. The pressure of his father, the rivalry with his brother, topped off with the loss of the girl that he loved; it was no wonder he came off as he did. She suddenly felt like she understood him.

The man in front of her, was never going to give Caroline what she wanted; was probably going to hurt her friend's feelings terribly when his eventual rejection came… But Skylar no longer felt like her best friend was in danger.

Feeling the urge to lighten the mood and end the intense moment between them, Skye chuckled. "By the way," she started, taking her hand away from his. "I'd stop with the flirty remarks to Elena. Care has a whole _thing_ with her and guys… I don't think you're ready for the drama that comes with an insecure Caroline."

"Noted." He barely mumbled, his stare never wavering from her face.

His attention was finally shifted over to Elena and Bonnie as they walked into the room.

"You okay?" Elena asked. "Need any help?"

"Sure." Skye smiled. "If you could just check I put everything away right, I get worried."

"Of course." She smiled. "Thank you for offering to do all this."

As the two girls walked in to join her, Skye's eyes lingered on the older Salvatore as he walked away towards the living room.

 **-x-x-x-**

That night, Skylar was sat at her desk as she listened to the music coming from Tyler's room.

He was angry that Stefan had made it onto the football team, angry that he'd basically made a fool of himself while trying to embarrass the youngest Salvatore. So, he was in his room, listening to loud music and probably breaking anything he didn't have an emotional attachment to.

Skye was just glad that their rooms were far enough away from their parent's. If their dad came back from his trip out of town to the news that Tyler had kept their mother awake all night with loud music and crashes, she feared what he'd do to Tyler. She guessed that's why Tyler got away with certain things, like sneaking Vicki in. It's because there was no real way for their parents to know about any of it. They very rarely come to check on their children at night.

Fidgeting with the charm on her bracelet, she glanced over at the pile of smashed CDs in the corner of her room; thinking back to the argument that she'd had with Tyler when she'd gotten home from Elena's house.

 **-x-x-x-**

" _Where have you been?" Tyler asked her as she walked into the house. "Do you realise how stressful dinner is when I'm the only kid in the house?"_

" _I was at Elena's." She replied. "She wanted us to help Stefan settle into town a little better."_

 _He scoffed, shaking his head. "Of course, it was because of Salvatore."_

" _Listen, I get that you're mad that Stefan made the team, but surely it's a good thing? With another good player, and don't say that he isn't a good player because I saw him, then there's a better chance of winning tomorrow." She said, making her way towards her bedroom._

" _Yeah, and another player for dad to compare me to." He sneered. "It's not exactly something I need right now."_

" _Ty, it's going to be fine. You're good at what you do. Dad will come around, I know he will." She said, trying to put a comforting hand on his shoulder._

 _But he batted the hand away. "Cause he's been so chill about every so far." He scoffed, looking at his sister as though he couldn't stand the sight of her tonight. Slamming the door to his bedroom, he apparently decided that their conversation was over._

 _Storming into her own bedroom, she was seething. How could her brother treat her so terribly for going round to a friend's house for dinner? It wasn't like he never did it himself. What an asshole._

 _Not being able to stifle the anger bubbling up inside of her, she quickly grabbed the closest thing to her and threw it against the wall. She watched as the CDs all tumbled out of the small rack that they were in, before moving over to them._

 _She picked up each case one by one, smashing it to pieces and throwing them away once they were destroyed beyond recognition._

 **-x-x-x-**

Their father was always expecting more from Tyler than he was her, and she agreed that Tyler never seemed to do anything that their dad deemed worthy enough of praise. But she'd stopped trying to reason with their father a long time ago, realising that it always just seemed to make things worse for her twin brother.

A part of her wanted to apologise to her brother for the fight that they'd had. But she just couldn't bring herself to do it, even with their dad being awful to him, it just wasn't enough of an excuse for him to be a complete dick to everyone around him. But she missed her brother, missed being able to tell him everything, missed being able to laugh with him.

She just missed him.

Sighing, she got into bed, deciding to deal with the pile of trash that she'd created in the morning. She wondered if she would actually hear from Caroline before the game tomorrow or if she'd still be too caught up in Damon to contact anybody else.

Damon.

She wasn't sure what to think of him anymore. It always seemed hard to decipher if what he was saying was a lie or the truth. He only ever changed his facial expressions slightly, meaning you had to really concentrate if you wanted to pick up on anything.

Which is why she'd been so caught off guard when she'd tried to comfort him. The look in his eyes; as though he just never experienced any form of kindness until that moment. She'd never had someone look at her that way before; like she was someone completely different from the rest.

Maybe Damon wasn't an awful guy, maybe he had just learnt to expect the worst from everyone, to expect the worst from the universe. Maybe he was trying to protect himself from the cruelties of the world by pushing everyone else away… But that was no excuse for the way he acted.

She guessed there wouldn't really be an opportunity for her to find out.

Glancing over at her balcony windows, she started to drift to sleep, the crow perched outside on her balcony as it always was now.

 **-x-x-x-**

Standing out on her balcony, Damon watched the young Lockwood girl sleep peacefully.

She had been kind to him, regardless of his actions towards her or her friend. She had shown him comfort, even whilst knowing that he was trying to ruin his own brother's relationship.

Damon hadn't experienced either of those things in a long time.

He almost felt bad for the things he would have to do. The pain he would no doubt cause her and her friends with his mission to free Katherine from the tomb.

With one last glance, he turned, leaving to think about his next move for the night of the game.

Skylar wouldn't be wearing her bracelet, he would have to find her alone somehow.

He just wasn't sure when he was going to get the chance.

 **-x-x-x-**

" _Well, if I could apologise,_

 _Put the light back in your eyes,_

 _No-one's ever looked at me that way."_

 **-x-x-x-**

 **A/N: We're almost back up to date. We're getting there! It's happening.**

 **Welcome to anybody new! Thank you to anybody who is re-reading it all.**

 **I hope you're enjoying this version!**

 **~ fawningfantasy x**


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